Secret Aftermath
by Mediatorsk
Summary: The Charmed Ones must deal with the aftermath of Paige's secret and race against time to save her, while Piper struggles to cope with a trauma of her own without Leo by her side. Sequel to Another Secret Revealed. NEW CHAPTER POSTED on 03/11/13!
1. Chapter 1

_**Author's Note: **See! I didn't make you wait long for the sequel, did I? **Swedish Mystery** will be co - writing certain sections of this fan fiction with me, but this chapter has been penned by me. However, I must thank **Swedish Mystery** for her beta reading and helpful suggestions. Hope you enjoy. Thanks again for all your reviews. _

**Secret Aftermath **

Sequel to _Another Secret Revealed_

**Chapter 1**

Phoebe reacted quickly to the demonic intruder, levitating to avoid the thorns that shot out of his mouth like a round of bullets from a machine gun. She lowered herself rapidly so that her foot was level with his face and delivered a swift hard kick to his right jawbone, sending him on a collision course with the door which splintered as he crashed into it. Phoebe gasped softly as she thought of Piper lying in the bed behind her and turned expeditiously in mid air so that she could see her. She saw that the thorns had hit the wall above the headboard leaving her dormant sister unscathed.

The demon recovered almost immediately, quickly taking advantage of the fact that the witch had her back to him. He grabbed her left ankle before she could plant her feet back on solid ground. Phoebe had no chance to react as she was thrown over Piper's bed like a rag doll, with a view of the sleeping form of her sister rushing by below her. She landed on the opposite side of the room with a thud, her right shoulder slamming into the couch while her flailing left arm inadvertently knocked over the side table. The glass vase it had held shattered when it hit the hardwood floor, spraying water and scattering flowers across the room.

Phoebe grunted in pain as she lifted herself off the floor but she quickly hit the deck again as the demon shot another volley of thorns in her direction. She cried out loudly as two of them pierced her already painful shoulder and one the side of her neck, bloodying her skin and her top. The rest embedded themselves in the sofa and the wall behind it.

Victor heard the commotion upstairs from the living room and threw the newspaper he was reading onto the floor. "Oh no, not again!" He exclaimed. Without any thought for his own safety, he bolted from the lounge chair he was sitting in and ran for the stairs, taking them two at time.

Prue had orbed in and he stumbled on the last step in shock as he recognised his oldest daughter. She grabbed his arm to stop him from tumbling backwards down the staircase. "Get down!" she shouted at her father as she pushed him onto the floor and shielded him with her own body as the demon exploded, sending a hail of wood splinters from the battered bedroom door flying through the air like shrapnel.

Still on the floor, on her knees and leaning on her elbows, Phoebe looked up. Her jaw dropped at the sight before her. Piper was awake and sitting upright. Her face wore an expression of vacuous perplexity as she studied the back of her hands while slowly lowering her arms until they came to rest on the duvet that still covered her legs. Her eyes narrowed and her brows wrinkled as she registered the cries of her sons who had been awakened by the commotion. She seemed to have forgotten that she wasn't alone as she tossed the covers to one side and threw her legs over the edge of the bed. "They need their mother." Her words were barely audible as she walked toward the nursery room door in an almost zombie like manner, stepping around Phoebe on her way.

"Piper?" the younger Halliwell questioned, but her sister appeared not to hear her. Phoebe struggled as she tried to stand up, but fell on her knees once more and leaned against the edge of the bed for support as a wave of dizziness overcame her.

Prue stepped aside so that her father could get up. Victor looked understandably stunned to see his 'dead' oldest daughter standing in front of him. "What the-"

"Shh!" Prue whispered, lifting a finger to her lips. "I'll explain everything later. Right now I need you to take care of Piper for me and distract her a while I help Phoebe. Piper apparently hasn't noticed me and I don't want her to just yet."

There were so many things Victor wanted to say to his daughter, like how much it had hurt to lose not only a wife, but a daughter to magic, how he had missed her terribly, how afraid he was that his remaining children would die in the same way and he would be helpless to stop it. However, he knew now was not the time and he simply nodded in understanding. Prue waited until he was in the nursery, deliberately blocking Piper's view of the bedroom as he stood in the doorway, and she hurried to Phoebe's side.

"Pr-" Once again, the Elder held her index finger to her own lips, silencing her sister. Knowing Phoebe had injured her right shoulder, Prue took her left arm around her own shoulders and wrapped her other arm around her baby sister's waist. She noticed straight away that Phoebe was damp with sweat and her breathing was ragged. "Come on sweetie, let's go."

"What's the matter with me?" Phoebe mumbled once they reached the hallway.

Prue could see that her sister was seconds away from losing consciousness. "Phoebe, stay with me, okay? PHOEBE! Listen to me!" Phoebe's head had lolled to one side but she raised it quickly, her eyes widening in response to Prue's panicked voice. "The thorns are poisonous, honey, but don't worry I'm going to fix it, okay? I just need to get you to the attic." Her voice echoed off the walls in the hallway as she orbed out with her injured sister.

- - - - -

Sam looked on quietly as Paige was moved to a room. It was semi private, but the other bed was empty. A nurse and an orderly transferred the sedated witchlighter from the gurney to the bed. The nurse covered her with the sheets and fussed over her for a few minutes, checking the medical equipment around her, taking readings and changing her IV bag. When the nurse was confident that her patient was settled, she raised the safety bars on either side of the bed and gave Sam a sympathetic smile. "Miss Matthews will be asleep for a while. Why don't you go home and get some rest Mr. Wilder. There's nothing you can do for her right now."

The whitelighter cleared his throat before speaking. "I'd like to stay for a bit if that's okay."

The nurse looked at him thoughtfully. His face was etched with worry and fatigue. "All right. But just for a while. If you need anything, just press this button." She held it up for him to see and put it back beside Paige next to her right hand. "I'll just be at the desk down the hall."

Sam nodded in acknowledgement. "Thank you."

The nurse checked her patient one last time and switched off the main light on her way out, leaving only the light above the bed to shine down on Paige's pale features. Sam sat down on the chair beside the bed and watched his daughter while she slept. He listened to the sound of her nocturnal breathing. She looked peaceful in her slumber, as if it were just another ordinary night. It was anything but normal and he had a feeling things were going to get much worse. As if on cue, he heard a familiar jingling sound in his head but ignored it.

Unable to sit still any longer, the whitelighter rose from the chair and walked to window. He put one hand in his jeans pocket and rubbed at the stubble on his chin with the other. He gazed through his own reflection in the glass and down at the normally busy street below. At this time of night it was almost deserted except for the odd car that drove through the intersection. The jingling sounded again but he brushed it off once more. He looked up at the sky and made out a crescent moon attempting to peak through clouds. Sam turned around to face his daughter again watched as her chest rose and fell rhythmically with every breath. It was almost hypnotic. He sat down again at her bedside, and hesitantly, carefully, placed his large rugged hand on top of her slender silky smooth one, as if he were afraid his touch might disturb her. He sat in silence, watching Paige. It startled him when he heard the jingling sound for the third time, causing him to jerk his hand away from her. This time it was louder, more urgent. Sam sighed heavily. "All right, all right," he mumbled. He held his gaze on his daughter, orbing out reluctantly.

- - - - -

The attic glowed with blue light as Prue orbed in with her injured sister who had gone limp in her arms and she hurriedly sat her down on the sofa. "PHOEBE!" Prue exclaimed urgently as she reached over to switch on the table lamp beside them. Phoebe half opened her eyes and moaned softly in response.

The Elder pulled out the thorns, making Phoebe wince. "Sorry sweetie. I know it hurts." Blood gushed out of the wound in her neck and Prue quickly raised her hand to heal the injury. Then she allowed her hand to linger over her sister's shoulder. Phoebe's eyes opened fully and she looked at her sister. Prue breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank God. You okay, sis?

"I think so. What happened?" Phoebe blinked in an attempt to clear her vision and slowly sat up.

"The thorns were poisonous. The poison usually acts more insidiously but you were hit with three, not to mention one of them hit an artery. It worked its way through your system more quickly. A few more minutes and you would have slipped into a coma and died. As much as I miss you honey, I don't want you joining me up _there_ anytime soon." Prue gave her sister's hand a little squeeze before getting up to fetch the Book of Shadows from its stand and sat down beside Phoebe, placing the tome on her lap. She flipped through the pages until she found what she was looking for. She pointed at the title. "Thorn demons." She waited patiently as Phoebe read the passage.

"Wow," Phoebe commented as she closed the book and placed it beside her. "Why did a thorn a demon come after us? They're not that powerful. It was suicide for just one to show up here. I hope we don't run into them again anytime soon though."

Prue looked into her sister's questioning eyes. "I have the feeling we will. Phoebe, all three of you are vulnerable right now and open to attack. That's why the Elders have let me come back to you. After all the good you've done they feel they owe it to you to protect you. Ensuring the survival of the Charmed Ones ensures the survival of your offspring. If anything happens to you, a future like the one adult Chris came out of might still become a reality."

"After all the crap we've been through, NOW _they_ decide to help protect us." Phoebe shook her head, making move to get up from the sofa.

Prue held out a hand to stop her. "Sweetie, there's something you need to know."

"But Piper-" Phoebe objected.

Prue took hold of Phoebe's hand in hers. "Dad's taking care of her. Paige is the one we need to be worried about right now. That's why the Elders called me before. The darklighter poisoned her while she was unconscious. He was working with an alchemist named Gorlon. He-"

"But you can heal darklighter poison, right?" Phoebe interjected.

The Elder frowned and shook her head. "I can't. It's not darklighter poison."

"What exactly does this poison do?" Phoebe spoke hesitantly.

Prue was as reluctant to answer her sister question. "It gradually induces a psychotic state. It severely impairs thought and perception. She'll start to hallucinate, become delusional. In other words it's going to drive her crazy. Then her body will shut down and die, if she doesn't kill herself first."

The younger Halliwell looked like she had just been hit with a ton of bricks. "But there's a cure, right, a potion or something?"

Prue shook her head again and squeezed her visibly shaken sister's hand.

"Are you telling me Paige is going to die?" Phoebe's face was etched with disbelief and she grabbed the Book of Shadows with her trembling hand in desperation. "There has to be something in here."

The Elder put her free hand on top of the tome to stop the anxious witch from opening it, knowing it was pointless. "Not if I can help it. You won't find anything in there. The Elders didn't know about Gorlon until a couple of hours ago and if there is a cure only he has it. We have to go into the Underworld to find him."

_Sorry, I just can't seem to get the cliffhanger queen out of me. :P_


	2. Chapter 2

_It took longer than I thought it would to post this chapter as I did a major re-write, but I think you'll find it was well worth the wait. Thank you to those of you who reviewed. As always, your support is much appreciated. _

**Chapter 2**

Victor approached Piper cautiously. "You okay, sweetheart?" His words were laced with concern. He watched her as she rocked on her heels while holding both of her sons in her arms. Wyatt looked up at his mother in quiet contemplation as she hummed softly. Victor was certain the boy had picked up on his mother's distress, despite his young age. Baby Chris blinked and sneezed.

"Bless you." His mother looked down at him and he gazed up at her with innocent eyes. Victor stood behind his daughter and realised too late that placing a hand on her shoulder in an attempt to comfort her was a mistake. She flinched and stepped away from him in fear. "Don't touch me!"

Victor stepped back to give Piper more space. "Sweetheart, it's me, your father. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you. I won't hurt you."

She turned to look at him briefly, and not seeming to recognise him, she turned her back to him once more. Wyatt did. He reached out with his little arms over his mother's shoulders toward his grandfather, opening and closing his little fists. "Gwanpa."

This got Piper's attention and she slowly turned to face Victor. She studied him for a moment, her fear and mistrust giving way to recognition. When she finally spoke, her voice was barely above a whisper and almost childlike. "Daddy."

"Gwanpa," Wyatt reached out to his grandfather once more.

Victor nodded. "That's right. It's only me." He could see that she was beginning to feel the weight of holding two children in her arms as she shifted uncomfortably. "Can I take my grandson?" He asked cautiously. Piper hesitated as her father looked at her expectantly. Her eyes were bloodshot and filling with tears which she fought back. "Let me help. Please?" Her father tried again and held out his arms to take Wyatt. He wanted more than anything to wrap those arms protectively around his daughter and comfort her, but he didn't want to upset her any more than she already was.

Piper slowly reached out to her father and handed Wyatt to him, who rested his head on his grandfather's shoulder and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. Victor felt her trembling as she did so and ruffled his grandson's hair as he yawned. "Hey there buddy. You hungry? Wanna go get a snack?" He wanted to get everyone away from the bedroom and moving to the kitchen seemed like a good idea.

"Yeah." Wyatt answered, touching his grandfather on his chin.

"Come with us Piper," her father urged her.

"Yeah, Chwis too." Wyatt added.

"It's probably about his feeding time anyway." Victor agreed. He held his hand out to her and waited. She seemed reluctant at first and it surprised him when she actually reached out and grabbed his hand. Her skin felt clammy and her grip was tight. Victor's heart was heavy with worry as they made their way to the kitchen together.

- - - - -

Phoebe jumped up suddenly and dumped the Book of Shadows behind her. It landed on the soft cushion beside the startled Elder with a heavy thud that shook the sofa. "We have to go NOW. We can't let Paige die!" She tugged at the sleeves of her sister's robe. "Come on, orb." She ordered. Prue didn't move. "Now!" Phoebe repeated herself more urgently. Prue looked down at the hardwood floor and frowned. "What are you waiting for? Come on damn it!" There was anger in her voice now and she pulled her big sister forcefully to her feet. "Or are you just going to let us all down again like you did when you left us!" She glared at her big sister, waiting for a reaction.

Prue was stung by Phoebe's words and she snapped. She grabbed both of Phoebe's arms above her elbows and shook her just enough to bring her out of her hysteria. "Phoebe, no! We are NOT going to orb head over heals down _there_ without a plan!" she exclaimed, pointing at the floor with her index finger for emphasis. "You go down there now and you'll end up dead like me! I will NOT let you kill yourself. You hear me?" Her face had gone crimson with anger and she took several deep breaths to calm herself. "We have to think this thr-"

Phoebe had broken free of her sister's grasp and bolted to the other end of the attic. She released her pent up frustration by knocking books off of shelves and sending empty potion vials and other objects crashing to floor. Then she ripped through several storage boxes and threw their contents across the room.

"Whoa!" Prue ran to her distraught sister. Phoebe saw her coming and bolted back to the bookshelf where she sent more heavy books tumbling to the floor. When Prue finally caught up with her, a couple of jars containing herbs followed suit and smashed at her feet. She jumped backward to avoid the shattering glass.

Now totally spent, Phoebe slouched against the bookcase, leaning her elbows on a now empty shelf and resting her forehead in her hands. She burst into tears that ran down her cheeks at angle and dripped off of her chin. "I can't lose another sister. I can't," she moaned.

Prue put a comforting arm around her little sister and gave her a reassuring squeeze. "You're not going to lose another sister. I won't let that happen. We'll figure it out. I'm sorry I left you and Piper. I didn't want to, but death was determined to take a Charmed One that day and I made damn sure it wasn't either of you."

Phoebe slowly slid to the floor and sat on top of some books in the middle of the mess she had made. She hugged her knees as Prue kicked away some shards of glass and sat beside her. She wrapped her arms around her little sister and held her close, listening to her muffled sobs as she cried into her shoulder and waited patiently for her to settle down.

It felt good to be in her big sister's protective embrace, to know that she wasn't alone, but Phoebe eventually lifted her head to look at her sister. "I'm sorry."

"About what honey?" Prue questioned, wiping away the tears in her sister's eyes with her thumbs.

"-For breaking down like this and making such a mess. And you're right. We need to think this through first. I'm sorry I got angry with you. You didn't let us down. You never have." The teary eyed witch hung her head and sniffed.

Prue smiled softly. "Phoebe, it's okay. You were angry. I was wondering when you'd let go. You've been under so much stress, more than you should be. As for the mess," Prue waved her hand dismissively, "-that's the least of our worries right now." She reached over to pick up a box of tissues that had fallen into a pile of books, handing it to Phoebe who gratefully accepted it and took one to blow her nose. Prue stared at her sister and chuckled.

"What?" Phoebe asked, confused.

"Nothing. It's just that I see so much of me in you. I would have reacted the same way as you did tonight when I was alive. I didn't always think things through first and I acted on impulse a lot." The smile on her face faded slowly. "Phoebe, don't forget the lesson you learned when I was killed. You may be a witch, but you're still mortal. You're not invincible. None of you are. You can't afford to be reckless."

Phoebe nodded in agreement. She knew her big sister was right. While Prue was alive, they had all taken for granted that they would always be together. Sure, they were all given a little wake up call when Piper 'died' from Oroya fever, but it didn't take long until they fell into a blind slumber again, living under the false assumption that Leo would always be there to heal them if anything went wrong. This thought brought her back to their current predicament. She sighed. "Okay. We better sit down and come up with a plan then." She stood up, brushing off her jeans, and Prue followed suit.

"Yes, but not tonight. You're exhausted and you're not thinking straight, not to mention the earthly plain can be tiring for visiting Elders." She smiled again, putting her arm around her little sister once more.

"But-" Phoebe began to object but Prue interrupted her, knowing what she was about to say.

"The poison is slow acting. Paige isn't going to get any worse tonight. We can sit down and work out a plan in the morning."

"Well maybe we should go to the hospital and-" Phoebe tried again.

Prue shook her head. "No. It's the middle of the night and there's nothing we can do for Paige at the moment. What you need to do right now honey, is to go to bed. It's been a really long day."

"But-"

"Phoebe!" Prue scolded. "Look, I'll stay with you for a while. We can have a sister slumber party like we did when we were kids. Would you like that?" Prue liked the idea herself because she could keep an eye on her and moreover, she had missed her little sister.

"Okay." Phoebe finally agreed, knowing her sister was right. "I'd like that. I'll make us some tea." She was beginning to look forward to spending some quality time with her big sister, time she thought she'd never have with her again.

- - - - -

Piper maintained her firm hold on her father's hand as they went downstairs, releasing it only when he sat her down at the small table he had moved into the kitchen from the sunroom to temporarily replace the one that had been demolished earlier that day. She cradled baby Chris in her lap and looked up at her father as he rested a reassuring hand on the top of her head. She flinched at his touch and he quickly withdrew his hand.

Victor cleared his throat in a moment of awkwardness and walked over to the baby carrier sitting on the kitchen countertop and grabbed a blanket. He cleared his throat again as he put the blanket on the table in front of Piper. Baby Chris was beginning to fuss in his mother's lap. "I think he's hungry sweetheart." She didn't respond, but stared blankly at the table in front of her instead. "Piper," her father prompted her again.

The discombobulated witch looked up at her father and down at her son. She mumbled an almost inaudible "Oh," in reply as her father's words finally registered with her.

Wanting to give his daughter a little space and privacy, he grabbed Wyatt's high chair and moved into the kitchen, placing Wyatt in the chair. "Hey buddy, how about some cookies and milk with your old granddad, eh?"

A slight smile formed on Wyatt's lips. "Yeah," he replied. There was a hint of excitement in his voice in anticipation of the tasty treat.

As Victor rummaged through one of the cupboards looking for Wyatt's sippy cup, Piper slowly undid the buttons of her pyjama top, a routine action she normally didn't think twice about. Now though, she felt exposed, vulnerable, and she shivered as a chill went up and her spine. She inhaled sharply and exhaled noisily as she held her baby to her breast and guided his mouth to her nipple. She took the blanket and draped it over herself and her infant son. He made soft sucking sounds as he drank her milk and she shifted uncomfortably. A tiny licking sensation on the sensitive skin around her nipple triggered a sudden horrifying memory. What should have been a most natural, tender, intimate moment between a mother and her baby suddenly humiliated Piper and her whole body quivered as she burst into tears. She remembered the darklighter's touch as he fondled her against her will, how his tongue burned on her skin.

Victor heard his daughter's quiet sobs as he placed a plate with animal crackers and sippy cup full of milk in front of Wyatt. He hurried to Piper's side and reached her just as she threw the blanket aside. He bent down to pick it up while placing a hand on baby Chris's back to stop her from pushing him away from her breast and covered them both with it. "Sweetheart, your son needs your milk." His eyes narrowed as he studied her for a moment. He knew she was having a flashback. "What did he do to you?"

Piper didn't respond, but she was breathing rapidly. She tried once again to get baby Chris away from her but her father still held his hand firmly over his grandson. "Sssh, it's okay. He's just thirsty, that's all. No one wants to hurt you. It's okay."

She squirmed in her chair and baby Chris whined softly as his feeding was temporarily interrupted. She began to hyperventilate when she felt him sucking again. "I can't! I-I-I'm s-sorry," she cried out between gasps for air. She sobbed uncontrollably now and her face was wet with tears. Baby Chris cried in protest as his mother thrashed about, his hunger left unsatisfied.

Victor picked up his grandson and rocked him in his arms in a futile attempt to pacify him. "Okay, okay let's see if we can find you a bottle of milk in the fridge. You can have that in a minute." He made his way brusquely into the kitchen, placing baby Chris in the carrier and lifted it off of the countertop. The fridge made clattering sounds as he threw the door open and he quickly scanned the contents of its shelves in search of a baby bottle.

Wyatt stopped nibbling on his animal cracker and let it drop onto his plate as he watched. He listened as his grandfather exhaled noisily when he found what he was looking for and placed it in the warmer. Wyatt then looked over his shoulder at his distressed mother. He picked up his sippy cup and looked down at it as if he were about to take a drink, but he slapped it against the table surface of his high chair several times instead. He shrieked and slammed the cup down beside his plate and it tipped over, spilling some of its contents on his animal crackers. Wyatt went quiet again and rubbed his eyes as he craned his neck to watch his grandpa hurry back to his mother.

Victor pulled up a chair beside her and placed the carrier on the floor next to him. "Piper?" She gripped the sides of her chair so tightly her knuckles went white as she took in ragged breaths. Beads of sweat formed on her forehead. Her top was still unbuttoned and the blanket was beginning to slide down. Victor pulled it up over both of her shoulders. "Piper, breathe honey," he instructed. Her head lolled backward and she was almost to point of passing out. "Piper!"

Phoebe walked into the kitchen with Prue following close behind her and halted abruptly as her father rushed past her. Spotting Piper, Prue backed up out of her line of vision behind the door and Phoebe watched as Victor rummaged through several drawers and cupboards, leaving chaos behind him until he found what he was looking for. She glanced at Piper and looked back at her father, eyeing the item in his hand. "What happened?" She asked anxiously, not bothering wait for a response, as she kicked into action, taking a bawling baby Chris out of the carrier.

"I should be asking you that that question," Victor replied as he returned to Piper's side. Phoebe heard the fear and the undertone of irritation in her father's voice.

Wyatt had gone very still and stared at his grandfather while baby Chris continued to wail in his auntie's arms. Victor sat down and held Piper's head up as he placed the object in held in his hand, a brown paper bag, over her mouth and nose. "Breathe in and out slowly ten times for me, honey." He counted each time she inhaled until she had taken the required number of breaths and then removed the bag. "Keep breathing for me sweetheart. In, out. In, out." He waited for fifteen seconds, and not satisfied that her breathing had slowed down enough, he replaced the bag over her mouth and repeated the entire process.

Piper had suffered a few panic attacks as a child when she had gone through her night terrors phase and he had remembered the paper bag trick. Their family doctor had explained that when someone hyperventilates, they are breathing excessively, taking in too much oxygen and lowering levels of carbon dioxide in their bloodstream. By breathing in exhaled carbon dioxide from a bag, the balance between the two is restored. Piper's breathing gradually returned to normal as father and daughter inhaled and exhaled together.

The manor had gone quiet as Phoebe fed her nephew from the bottle and she watched Piper with great concern. She had intercepted her sister's panic and was relieved when it had passed.

Victor smiled at Piper and spoke softly. "That's it. You're fine sweetheart. It's over now."

"I'm so sorry," Piper cried. "Is Chris okay?" She asked, buttoning her pyjama top under the blanket.

"He's fine sweetheart. Phoebe's feeding him a bottle now."

Piper was silent as she registered her sister's presence in the room and more memories flooded back. She jumped up from the chair. "Phoebe, oh my god, you were hurt, I just stepped right over you I didn't check to see if you were okay you were bleeding and I just walked right past you. Oh I'm sorry Phoebe, are you okay?" She rambled.

"Piper calm down, you'll get out of breath again. I'm fine sweetie," she answered.

"But you were bleeding. Who healed you? Someone must have healed you. Is Leo back?" Piper continued to babble.

"No." Phoebe responded. "Leo's not back. P-" She stopped abruptly and quickly corrected herself. "An Elder came down and healed me." Piper, who was normally very perceptive, didn't seem to notice her sister's slip up in her current state. "I'm fine, really, and thank you for blowing up that demon, otherwise I wouldn't be," Phoebe added.

"Take it easy, Piper. You should go back to bed now and get some sleep. Phoebe and I will take care of the boys," Victor added.

"Why don't you sleep in Paige's room for the night since she's in hospital anyway. Your room is pretty trashed," Phoebe suggested.

"Is Paige all right?" Piper asked.

"Uh, Paige is fine," Phoebe answered. "For now," she mumbled under her breath.

If Piper had been more alert, she would have noticed the micro – gestures in her sister's body language indicating that she wasn't being entirely truthful. "What about the boys?"

"They'll be fine in their own beds. We can move the monitor into Paige's room for you," Phoebe continued.

"Okay. Piper agreed."

"Okay buddy, let's get you back to bed now." Victor lifted Wyatt out of his high chair. "Come on Piper. You need some rest."

She was reluctant and she looked at her sister, who was still holding baby Chris in her arms. She watched as he continued to suck contentedly at the bottle that Phoebe was holding for him in her hand and felt guilty that she couldn't give him what he needed.

"Go on Piper," Phoebe encouraged. "I'll put Chris to bed when we're done here. Go with dad."

Piper sighed and followed her father out of the room. "Thanks, Phoebes. Good night." Prue was lurking in the hallway and orbed out quickly as soon as she saw the door moving.

"Good night sweetie," Phoebe replied. Once she was alone in the kitchen she began to realise just how tired she was herself and she yawned. When she had finished feeding her nephew, she took him upstairs and put him back in his crib. Wyatt had already fallen asleep in his bed and Chris cooed softly as she covered him with the blanket. She kissed both of her nephews and quietly left the room, running into her father in the hallway. "Is Piper okay?"

Victor nodded and explained what had caused Piper's panic attack and how she wouldn't talk about what had happened to her. Phoebe said that she was bound to be traumatised and that it would take time before she was ready to talk. "How about you, Phoebe? How are you doing?"

Phoebe sighed. "I'm exhausted and worried, about Piper and Paige."

"What's wrong with Paige?" Victor asked, confused.

"Well, she's okay for now, but…she was…" Phoebe paused and sighed again. "I'll explain everything in the morning. I'm too tired to get into it now."

Her father hugged her and kissed her on the forehead. "Goodnight sweetheart. I'll be downstairs on the couch if you need anything."

"Goodnight Dad. Thanks for all your help."

"You're welcome." He smiled at her and waved as he walked down the staircase.

Phoebe made her way to her bedroom. She found Prue sitting on the edge of her bed dressed in one of her nightshirts. This made Phoebe laugh.

"What?" Prue questioned.

"It's just ironic to see you wearing MY clothes, that's all."

"Yeah well, I figure it's about time you made up for all those years you borrowed mine, sis." Prue snickered. "By the way, I'm going to need to borrow more clothes in the morning. I can't exactly wear this in the Underworld," she said, holding up her robes and tossing them onto the floor. "Kind of a dead give away, don't you think?" she added.

Phoebe snorted and smirked at Prue, shaking her head. She changed into her pyjamas and joined her sister on the bed.

Prue handed her a steaming mug of tea. "Here. I made it while you were putting Chris to bed and talking to dad."

"Thanks." Phoebe sipped at her tea and then placed it back on the nightstand. Then she snuggled in closer to her big sister and felt her wrapping her arm around her. "You have no idea how many times I've laid here in this bed staring up at the ceiling wishing you were here and now you really are."

"Oh yes I do. Because all those times you were looking up I was looking right back down at you, sweetie."

Phoebe's eyes filled with tears and rolling onto her side, she hugged her big sister tightly, resting her head on her shoulder.

They lay that way for a while in silence until Prue finally spoke as she tucked some stray hair behind Phoebe's ear. "I saw how you grieved when I died, how you tried to be brave for Piper while you were broken inside. I saw the torment you went through with Cole, the grief you felt when you lost him that first time. I also know that you think you're never going to have that beautiful little girl you saw in your vision. I know you were hurting. I wanted so much to be right here with you and take all your pain away."

Phoebe sighed. "Well, I'm not going to have that little girl, not with things the way they are now. My sisters need me and I have to make sacrifices, just like you did for us."

"And look where that got me. Don't talk that way. Don't you give up on your dreams. This is just a temporary setback." Prue felt Phoebe fidgeting a little and she looked at her baby sister. "What's wrong?"

"It was my fault." Phoebe mumbled.

"What was?" Prue asked, perplexed.

"It was my fault you died." She answered.

"How was my death your fault, honey?" Prue asked, still confused.

"I shouldn't have left you two alone. You'd still be alive if I hadn't been so obsessed with saving Cole."

"Well, you know how I felt about him so let's not even go there, but my death was NOT your fault. It wouldn't have made any difference if you had been there. Like I said before, death had it out for us that day. It was fate and something good came out of it. Paige walked into your lives and she's done so much good."

"Yeah," Phoebe agreed. "She kept this family together. Piper would never have moved on after you were gone if it hadn't been for Paige." Prue snickered and Phoebe looked up at her sister. "What?" She asked innocently.

"I'm just remembering something. I saw when Paige made those hangover cures of hers for Piper after she got drunk when you ran off with Cole."

"That wasn't one of my better moments," Phoebe admitted. "I do have to say in my defence that I was being poisoned with pure evil."

"I know sweetie." Prue reassured her and laughed once more. "I have to admit Piper's funny when she's drunk. I mean, she froze Leo at the club and then she fell on her butt. That was priceless. I shouldn't laugh but I can't help it."

Phoebe snorted. "Remember the first time Piper ever got plastered?"

Prue grinned. "Oh yes. How could I ever forget? I had to pick her up from her grad party. Come to think of it, I found her on her butt then too, nearly passed out. She puked all over my new shoes on the way to the car."

Phoebe stifled her laughter in the fabric of Prue's t-shirt.

"What?" Prue protested. "I was saving forever for those shoes!" She shook her head in disbelief. "It was a damn miracle Grams never heard us when we got home. Piper had such a hangover the next morning that she overslept and snuck out of my bedroom window so Grams wouldn't know she was late for school." A sudden realisation dawned on her. "Hey! How did you know about that anyway?"

Phoebe shrugged and grinned deviously at her big sister. "Little sisters are nosey. They know everything."

Prue swatted her sister playfully. "Don't I know it! YOU ratted on me and got me grounded the first time I came home tanked."

"Yeah." Phoebe smirked and yawned. The day had finally taken it's toll on her and her eyelids drooped shut. "I was a pain in the ass." She sighed and yawned again.

"Don't even get me started missy," her big sister chided her, turning off the table lamp next to her, enveloping the room in darkness.

Phoebe smiled, savouring her big sister's soothing touch as she ran her fingers through her hair. "Prue?" She questioned, shifting slightly.

"Mm-hmm?" Prue responded.

"I'm sorry my boyfriend's cat peed on your leather jacket," Phoebe mumbled, already half asleep.

Prue raised an eyebrow. "I know. We'll talk about that when this is all over." She looked down and smiled when she saw that Phoebe had fallen asleep. Prue kissed her baby sister on the forehead and continued to stroke her soft chestnut coloured hair while listening to her nocturnal breathing.

"Sleep well," she whispered.

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**WARNING:** DO NOT USE A PAPER BAG ON SOMEONE WHO IS HYPERVENTILATING UNLESS YOU KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING. TAKE A FIRST AID COURSE OR CHECK THE ST JOHN AMBULANCE _FIRST AID ONLINE_ WEBSITE

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	3. Chapter 3

_Sorry it took so long to post this chapter but I literally couldn't post it. I kept getting an error message when I tried to upload on Was anyone else having this problem when posting? I know some of you, okay many of you will be moaning about the shortness of this chapter, but it just seemed like the right place to end it. Hope you enjoy. As usual thank you so much for all your reviews._

**Chapter 3**

Piper awoke to the sound of birds chirping outside the window and a dog barking somewhere in the distance. She blinked, momentarily disoriented until she remembered she was in Paige's room. Rubbing the sleep out of her eyes she glanced at the clock beside the bed and the numbers read 6:30am. For one second she had forgotten the events of the previous day and even Leo, but the memories came flooding back, along with her pain. She blinked away the tears that blurred her vision to see Phoebe in her tank top and pyjama bottoms standing in the half open doorway. "Hey."

"Hey yourself," Piper answered quietly.

Phoebe padded across the floor in her bare feet and sat on the edge of the bed beside her sister. She could see the tears in Piper's eyes. Phoebe reached out and cautiously tucked some stray hair behind her ear. Piper didn't move. "Sleep okay?"

"Not really." The older Halliwell answered.

The younger Halliwell slowly wrapped her arms around her big sister carefully, half expecting her to pull away, but Piper returned the hug, leaning her chin on her little sister's shoulder. Phoebe rocked her gently for a moment to calm her. "Feel like talking?"

"No." Piper responded, breaking the hug.

Phoebe didn't push it, knowing Piper would talk in her own time. "I'm going to the hospital this morning to see Paige. Feel up to coming with me?

"Uh…" Piper was reluctant. "I don't know. The house is a mess and I really need to take care of my sons. I can't expect Dad to-"

"Piper, I think it would be good for you to see Paige today. She needs to know that you're okay. You almost died in her arms and she saved your life." Phoebe interjected.

Her big sister's eyes widened in surprise. "Paige healed me? She can heal now? I-I didn't know, I only remember bits and pieces." Her voice trailed off and was barely audible by the time she had finished her sentence.

Phoebe nodded. "So you're coming then?"

"I don't think I should-"

"Are you mad at Paige, because I feel anger?" Phoebe interrupted Piper once more, having intercepted her sister's emotions.

"No! No, of course not! Why would I be mad Paige? I- I'm just angry about the whole situation right now, which is I why I think I should just stay-"

"Piper, please." Phoebe persisted. "Paige needs to see you."

"I…okay. Okay." Piper agreed. "I'll come. Just let me look after my boys first and I'll cook us some breakfast."

"Okay. That's settled then," Phoebe ran a soothing hand up and down her sister's back. "We'll go after breakfast."

- - - - -

"Poisoned?!" Piper exclaimed.

Phoebe broke the news to her sister as they drove to the hospital in her Mini.

"I don't understand. Are you sure Phoebe? How do you know this?"

Phoebe shifted gears and looked over at Piper briefly as she answered. "The Elder who healed me told me."

"What Elder? Who was it?" Piper asked anxiously.

"Does it matter?" Phoebe answered her sister's question with a question.

"What do we do?"

"To be honest, I don't know yet," Phoebe replied solemnly.

- - - - -

The world around her was fuzzy and floated in front of her half opened eyes and she blinked several times in an attempt to clear her vision. Sound and images were distorted. It felt like she was watching a scene from a movie or sports match being replayed in slow motion. She heard voices around her but she couldn't understand what they were saying. She shook her head lightly from side to side and grimaced.

"Paige? Can you hear me?" Her older sibling inquired, looking down at her with concern.

Paige mumbled in response and groaned in frustration as her voice didn't seem to be working properly either. She blinked a few more times and her vision cleared enough for her to recognise the face hovering above her. Her eyes widened in surprise. Her mouth felt dry and she moistened her lips with her tongue before attempting to speak again. "Piper?"

"Yeah, it's me," Piper squeezed her sister's hand. "Phoebe's here too. She's making a phone call but she'll be back soon. How are you feeling sweetie?"

"M-my fault," Paige mumbled softly and blinked a few more times. She recognised the other person standing at her bedside and responded irritably to her presence. "You."

Dr Phillips had been pre-occupied with checking Paige's vitals, but she looked right into her patient's eyes after hearing her voice. "Well, I'm obviously not your favourite person this morning." Dr. Phillips retorted with a hint of sarcasm in her voice. She frowned and looked over at Piper. "Your sister got so agitated last night that I had to administer a very strong sedative. She wasn't happy about it but I was concerned that she would do herself further harm, not to mention she was determined to leave here to get to you. I also had the nurse give her something earlier this morning to keep her calm. She'll be a little out of it for a while." She paused for a moment in thought. "Miss Halliwell, do you have any idea what could have caused Miss Matthews to get so upset?"

"Uh…" Piper struggled for a moment and fidgeted nervously in the chair she was sitting in. Knowing that lying was not her forte, she clammed up instead and opted for a blunt response. "…I don't know."

Dr. Phillips raised her eyebrows sceptically. She was certain Piper DID know, but she registered the pained expression in the young woman's eyes and decided not to pursue the matter for the moment.

Piper squeezed the fingers of her left hand with the fingers of her right repeatedly. "Uh, will my sister be able to come home today?"

Dr Phillips pursed her lips together in thought. "I'd like to keep Miss Matthews here for another day. I'm not happy with her stats. It could just be due to the stress she's been under lately but I'd like to run some more tests, just to be sure. I'll be back later to check on her."

"This sucks," Paige muttered in response as struggled to keep her eyes open.

The doctor smiled sympathetically. "I know you don't like hospitals Miss Matthews, but I want to make absolutely certain you're okay before I let you go. You've been through a lot. Just take it easy and rest."

Piper smiled at the doctor and watched as she left the room, breathing a sigh of relief when she was gone. She turned her attention back to her sister when she heard her name being called.

"I'm s-sorry," Paige spoke slowly and her speech was a little slurred.

"Sorry about what?" Piper frowned in confusion.

"M-My fault you got hurt." Paige mumbled.

Piper went quiet for a moment as she realised what her sister was referring to. "No it wasn't." She spoke softly.

"But if I had just stayed here, if I hadn't orbed back t-to the manor, he wouldn't have got to you." Paige repeated once more. She didn't like the way the drugs in her system were making her feel – nauseous, zombie-like and not in control. She wanted to go to sleep but she forced herself to stay awake.

Piper shook her head. "No. He would have got us both anyway."

"Hi! I'm back." Phoebe walked through the door tossing her cell phone into her bag as she approached Paige's bedside.

Paige raised her head to see who had entered the room. Her vision blurred and the room seemed to sway back and forth, making her feel nauseous. She closed her eyes for a moment and when she opened them again, her gaze fell on Piper. Her eyes widened in horror. Blood gushed out of a wound in the side of Piper's head. Her eye was swollen shut and her body was pockmarked with bleeding puncture wounds. She gasped at the sight of the figure standing just behind Piper. Paige sat bolt upright in bed and screamed. "Darklighter!"

It was Phoebe's turn to gasp as she disappeared in a swirl of blue lights and was hurled across the room, slamming into the door. She re - materialised, dazed, as her backside hit the floor.

"Oh god!" Piper ran to Phoebe's side and helped her up. "Are you okay?"

Before Phoebe could answer, she was metamorphosed into blue light once more, this time slamming into a wall on the opposite side of the room as she reappeared. She screamed out in pain, clutching her shoulder as she landed on the floor.

"Paige stop it! That's Phoebe, not a demon!" Piper cried out in panic as she ran to her fallen sister.

Prue orbed in behind Piper wearing street clothes. She quickly grabbed Phoebe and orbed out again before Paige could do her any more harm. Piper turned around just in time to recognise the figure now disappearing with her sister. Her jaw dropped in shock. "Oh my god!"


	4. Chapter 4

_Well, I managed to get two chapters out in one week. I figured that I owed you, my patient readers, a faster update. Also, as I am stuck at home recovering from a lung infection, so I should be able to update within the week once again. Once again thanks for the reviews and I'm still in the process of responding to them. _

_I am currently moderating a F**orum **here on with **Swedish Mystery**. It's called **The Art of Charmed Fanfiction, **a place where you can voice your opinion on anything and everything around the topic of Charmed. Come check it out. We'd love to hear from you. _

_To find the Forum, just do a search for **Swedish Mystery** and go to her profile page. Once you're there, simply click on the **my forums **link. While you're visiting the Forum, why not take the time to check out **Swedish Mystery's** own piece of fiction, **The Curse of the Kalla Bong**. She is an incredibly talented author who writes with parodic style. If you're up for a bit of a chuckle, then this fic is for you. _

_Enjoy this next chapter and the forum if you check it out._

**Chapter 4**

Phoebe's cries of pain echoed off the walls of her bedroom as she re - materialised with Prue who walked her to the bed and helped her to sit down. "What _is_ it with my sisters beating up on me?" Phoebe questioned angrily and winced as Prue took off her jacket and examined her shoulder.

"Sorry," Prue apologised. "It's dislocated. I can heal it, but it's going to hurt like hell sweetie."

"Just do it." Phoebe instructed flatly.

Prue's hands glowed over her sister's injured shoulder and Phoebe screamed as the ball of her upper arm bone moved itself back into the joint socket. "Healing you is getting to be a habit. Are you hurt anywhere else?"

"Just my pride." Phoebe fumed, while gingerly rotating her arm in it's now healed socket.

"Sorry sweetie, I can't heal that." Her big sister responded sympathetically.

"Phoebe!" Victor burst through the door at that moment. He had just been down the hall fixing up Piper's room and making repairs when he had heard screaming. He looked from one daughter to the other with inquiring eyes and had a confused expression on his face. "What the hell is going on? I thought you were with Paige! And you-" he pointed at his eldest daughter, "-not that I'm not happy to see you because I am, but you still haven't told me why you're here and-"

"Dad, calm down, I'm fine, just a little misunderstanding with Paige. Why don't you go downstairs and make us some coffee and we'll be down in a minute to explain everything to you after I've had a word with Prue," Phoebe interjected.

Victor was now more confused than ever. "Paige? But, I don't understand. I thought-"

Phoebe cut her father off once again. "We'd REALLY love some coffee, Dad. Wouldn't we Prue?" She asked, looking to her big sister for support, who caught on quickly.

"Oh. Oh yes! I'd love some. I haven't had coffee since-" She let her sentence trail off before picking up again. "Well, you know me and coffee." She walked up to her father and twirled him around so that he was facing the door. "I promise we'll tell you everything dad. We just need a moment first, okay?"

Victor turned his head to look at his first born child. "Elders drink coffee?" Prue rolled her eyes.

"Dad, please?" Phoebe pleaded.

Victor sighed. "Fine, but don't keep me waiting too long."

"We won't," Prue assured him. Both sisters listened as he walked down the hallway and down the staircase. "Okay, sweetie, what's up?"

"Don't you _sweetie_ me Prue. I thought you said the poison works slowly!" Phoebe glared at her sister.

"It does, Phoebe, it's-"

Phoebe didn't give her sister the chance to finish her sentence. "Prue, she's hallucinating already! My own sister thinks I'm _evil_. She could have killed me. I'd say the poison is working its way through her system rather quickly, wouldn't you?"

"The poison works slowly but the victim quickly experiences temporary lapses of sanity, followed by periods of clear lucidity. However these lapses of sanity will occur for longer periods of time until the victim loses their sanity completely. I'm so sorry."

"Why didn't you tell me this before?" Phoebe was in a clearly agitated state.

"Because I only just found out myself," Prue answered. "I had a visit from one of the Elders after you left with Piper this morning."

"And did this Elder tell you where we can find this alchemist?" Phoebe asked impatiently.

Prue sighed. "No. _They_ don't know. It's up to us to figure it out."

"Of course! Why would it be any other way with _them_?" Phoebe shouted, flinging her arms in the air in front of her in frustration.

"Sweetie, you need to calm down. You're not going to be able to help Paige in this state."

"What about Dr. Phillips?" Phoebe asked.

"What about her?" Prue questioned in return.

"Well she's bound to get suspicious sooner or later. Insanity is not a normal side effect of lung injuries. How do we explain that? We're going to have a Dr. Williamson scenario on our hands again and we're in real danger of being exposed."

Prue sighed and tried to put an arm around her baby sister to reassure her, but Phoebe backed out of her grasp and paced back and forth instead. "Can you get that gypsy doctor to take over her treatment, uh, what's her name?" Prue snapped her finger repeatedly in an attempt to jog her own memory.

"Ava Nicolae." Phoebe answered. "I don't know Prue. I don't think it will be all that easy. Dr. Phillips has been treating her the whole time and if she has Paige moved to the psychiatric wing, well, that's not Ava's field. It's worth calling her and asking I suppose. Can this poison be detected in the bloodstream?"

"To be honest sweetie, I don't know. No one up _there_ has ever had any kind of experience with this type of poison before."

Phoebe took a deep breath and closed her eyes, pinching the top of her nose with her thumb and index finger. "How long before- how long does Paige have?"

"_They _think two, maybe three weeks," Prue answered quietly.

Phoebe flexed her cheekbones as she digested this information, revealing the tension she was feeling. She looked up at her sister with sudden fierce determination in her eyes. "We'll save her long before then. We'll drink coffee with dad, then I'll call Ava and when I'm done with that, we're going to start planning how to _kick_ this alchemist's ass and believe me I'm going to kick it so hard he won't know what hit him," she said between gritted teeth as she marched out of the bedroom with Prue following close behind her.

"Thanks for coming back from the dead to heal me yet again Prue," the eldest Halliwell mimicked her sister, rolling her eyes. "No problem Phoebe, anytime," Prue continued, her sister oblivious to her ramblings as they made their way down the hallway toward the staircase.

- - - - -

Piper was completely speechless and just stared at the spot where her big sister had stood. She was brought out of her stupor when she heard Paige crying out her name. She ran to her distressed sister's bedside. Paige was sitting up and reaching out to her sister. "Piper? Are you okay? Darklighter almost took you! Can't touch you. H-He can't touch you. Can't let that happen, never hurt you, can't let that happen, no, no, no, no, no…"

"Shhh, it's okay, I'm okay." Piper held her sister in her arms and rocked her gently as Paige mumbled the word "No," over and over again. She could feel her baby sister trembling in her arms. "Calm down sweetie, I'm fine. I wasn't in any danger. There was no darklighter. There's no one here but you and me." She held on to Paige until her trembling ceased and her breathing returned to normal, then helped her to lie down again. Paige grabbed her sister's hand. "Piper, don't go!"

"I'm not going anywhere. Just relax sweetie." Piper herself was anything but relaxed. She felt the tension in every muscle of her body and she wanted to scream, but she had to keep calm for her sister. If it hadn't been for Paige she would probably being having full blown panic attack by now.

"Can you close your eyes and go back to sleep for me now? I know you're tired."

"I'm sick of sleeping. I'm sick of hospitals," Paige protested.

"I know. And I would be too." Piper replied sympathetically.

"Piper, what's wrong with me? I know something's not right," Paige asked quietly, yawning.

"It's the drugs, don't worry. Just try to get some sleep." Piper answered quickly. She felt bad about being untruthful to Paige but she was only still digesting the news herself that her sister had been poisoned and now was not the time to tell Paige. "Honey, stop fighting the meds, just close your eyes. Please? A nap will do you a world of good."

"Will you be here when I wake up?" Paige asked.

"You bet." Piper smiled and gave Paige's hand a little squeeze. She was more or less stranded at the hospital anyway until someone came to get her.

"Piper?" Paige looked up at her big sister.

"Uh huh?" Piper answered back.

"Tell me a story about when you were growing up. I love to hear those stories." Paige stifled another yawn.

"A story about when I was a kid? Uh…" Paige's request came unexpectedly and Piper was thrown by it. "Well," she thought for a moment, "I once tried to run away from home when I was seven."

Paige smiled. "You tried to run away from home? Why?"

"I don't really remember why. I probably wanted a cookie before bed and Grams said no, or something silly like that. I was so mad I stomped my little foot down on the floor and told Grams I was leaving home." Piper chuckled. "She didn't take me seriously and just smiled back at me. _'You do that darling,'_ she said to me. I ran up the stairs and into my room and got my suitcase out of the closet. Prue saw me and I remember her yelling, _'Grams, she's packing her bag!'_ Do you know what I packed in that suitcase?"

"What?" Paige asked, staring at her sister.

"My teddy bear and my blanket, the things I never went to sleep without." Piper answered.

"That was it?" Paige queried, yawning yet again as her eyelids began to droop.

"Yep, that was it. I looked into Phoebe's room as I made my way down the hall with my bag and whispered good bye. She was just little at the time and asleep already. She had no idea what was going on. I could hear Prue yelling again when I ran outside to the porch, _'Grams she's really going, she just ran out the front door!'_ I dropped my suitcase and ran around to the back of the house. That was as far as I got. Prue found me there, sitting on the back steps in the dark, in my pyjamas. She-" Piper stopped abruptly when she noticed that Paige had fallen asleep and sighed with relief.

Piper stood up quickly and walked brusquely to the small private bathroom, closing the door behind her. She took several deep breaths to quell the onslaught of another panic attack and turned on the tap. She splashed cold water onto her face to wash away the tears in her eyes. She dried herself off with the towel and leaned over the sink to study herself in the mirror. Her eyes were red and there were dark shadows under them. She looked away in disgust and closed her eyes tightly. She balled her fists together and took another deep breath as she had a memory flashback. She saw herself standing in the mausoleum, slamming her fists in rage against her big sister's tombstone in the wall, heard herself crying out in rage, _How dare you leave me! How could you go and die and leave me here all alone? _Piper thought that she had dealt with her anger over losing her sister, but she felt it rising within her once more and was unable to stop it from surfacing. She opened her eyes and glanced upward. "Prue!" she whispered loudly between gritted teeth. "PRUE! You get your ass over here NOW!"

- - - - -

Prue sat quietly at the makeshift kitchen table and sipped her coffee, savouring the taste as she listened to Phoebe explain everything to their father. She was only just beginning to realise how much she had taken for granted while she was still alive. Prue froze as a familiar jingling sounded in her head and thumped her mug down on the table.

Phoebe stopped in mid sentence and registered her sister's worried expression. "What's wrong? Are _they _calling you?" she asked anxiously.

"No. Not _them_. Piper."


	5. Chapter 5

_**AN:** Sorry it took so long to post this, but firstly, it took longer than I thought to write this part, and secondly, I just got a promotion at work so I've been busy. Thanks again for your reviews. I love to hear from you. Enjoy! Thanks, as always, to my beta reader, **Swedish Mystery**._

**Chapter 5**

Prue rubbed at her temples with her fingers as the jingling in her head grew louder. "Piper's really pissed off."

"After you died she was she was consumed with rage and I thought it was my fault. Turned out her anger was directed at you," Phoebe commented.

"I know." Prue spoke softly, the saddened expression on her face revealing her remorse. "I was with mom. I saw everything." Unbeknownst to either Piper or Prue, they were both re-living the same memory over again simultaneously. Prue closed her eyes as she saw the image of Piper pounding her fists against her tombstone at the mausoleum and crumpling into a heap on the ground as she turned from a fury back into her bawling self, completely overcome with anguish. _How did she think that I could live without her? _Piper's words echoed in her mind.

Phoebe knew exactly what scene was playing out in her sister's head and she knew what Prue was feeling. "Death took your hand and wouldn't let go. You had no control Prue."

"I'm glad Paige told her it was okay to hate me." She took a deep breath and rubbed at her temples again. "Well, I guess I better answer Piper's call before I get a migraine," Prue laughed nervously.

Both Phoebe and her father wore expressions of empathy as Prue disappeared in a swirl of blue orbs and disappeared from the kitchen.

- - - - -

"PRUE!" Piper practically shouted out her sister's name and mentally slapped herself. "Damn it." The last thing she wanted was to wake Paige. She opened the door and stuck her head out, oblivious to the glow emanating behind her. She was relieved to see that her sister was still asleep. She turned around, shutting the door behind her and gasped when she found herself standing face to face with Prue.

"Piper."

The younger Halliwell was speechless to begin with and simply stared at her sister. Then her lips moved and she spoke in a low threatening tone. "I tried every spell I could find in the Book of Shadows but you never came back."

The two sisters stood unmoving, quietly eyeing each other as an ominous silence prevailed between them. Piper suddenly lashed out with her right hand and slapped Prue in the face. The loud cracking sound of flesh connecting with flesh shattered the silence, echoing off the ceramic bathroom tiles. The older Halliwell moved her jaw up and down as she rubbed the sore spot on her cheek.

"You hate me." Prue frowned. "I didn't want to leave you, but I didn't have a choice."

"So, _they_ made you a whitelighter now?" Piper asked abruptly.

"No." Prue shook her head. "An Elder." She waited for her sister to react, half expecting another smack in the face.

Piper's jaw dropped as she stared at her sister in disbelief. "WHAT! Is this _their_ SICK way of trying to control us, through YOU? It wasn't enough for _them _to take Leo away?" Her eyes glistened with tears. She shook her head lifted her arms in protest. "I can't do this." Piper opened the door and stormed out of the bathroom. Eyeing Phoebe's bag on the floor, she grabbed it and scrounged around inside it, fishing out Phoebe's car keys. Piper flew right past Prue, pushing her out of the way, but froze at the sound of Paige's soft voice.

"Piper."

"Damn." Piper slapped her forehead in frustration. The noise she and Prue had made had evidently awakened her younger sister. She turned and walked to Paige's bedside, ignoring Prue. "Oh sweetie, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you up."

Paige studied her sister's face and frowned. "I made you mad, didn't I?"

"What? No, no, of course not. It's not you. Look, I need to get out of here for a while and clear my head. I'll be back later."

"Oh." Paige looked past her sister and recognised Prue. Even in her current state Paige understood what was going on. "Okay." She was still drowsy from the meds. Her eyelids felt heavy and she blinked several times in an attempt to keep them open.

"Bye." Piper leaned forward to kiss Paige on the forehead and then started towards the door. Prue stepped out in front of her, deliberately blocking her path.

"Move or I'll blow you out of the way." Piper threatened, balling her fists together tightly, ignoring the pain she caused herself as she dug her nails into the palms of her hands.

Seeing the fire in her eyes, Prue stepped aside and let Piper leave. "Hey, YOU called me!" she shouted after her in frustration.

- - - - -

Piper slammed the front door of the manor shut behind her. "Phoebe!"

"What?" Phoebe emerged from the kitchen and walked toward her sister, who, to her surprise, grabbed her tee shirt at the neck with one hand and slammed her into the wall. "What the…have you lost your mind Piper?"

"Prue was the Elder who healed you. You KNEW she was here and you didn't even bother to tell me!"

Phoebe raised her hands in capitulation. "Okay take it easy Piper. I didn't tell you because I was afraid you'd react in exactly this way. You've been through so much lately. I was just trying to protect you. I was going to tell you eventually. I'm sorry."

Piper remained silent, glaring into her sister's apologetic eyes as she digested Phoebe's words. "I don't need protecting," she growled softly.

"Um, think you could let go of me now?" Phoebe asked cautiously.

Piper slowly released her grip on her sister and walked away from her in search of the keys to her jeep.

"Piper?" Phoebe followed her sister into the kitchen and out the side door. "Where are you going? Come back here!" She watched helplessly as Piper sped off in her jeep. Phoebe spun around on her heels and gasped as she collided with her father who had just walked out the door.

Victor grabbed his daughter by the arm to steady her. "Whoa! What's with Piper? Where's she going?"

Phoebe sighed. "I don't know."

- - - - -

"Just give her some time." Paige watched Prue studying the door.

Prue turned her head to look at her youngest sister and walked towards her. She sighed, coming to a stop at the foot of Paige's bed. "You always seem to know what's going on inside that head of hers."

Paige shrugged and a small smile formed on her lips. "Not really. Just been there myself, that's all. I know how I felt when I lost my parents. She'll come around."

Prue smirked. "Listen to you, a whitelighter giving an Elder advice."

"Well, Elders don't always know everything." Paige grinned back at her.

"Ooooh, another smartass in the family." Prue narrowed her eyes and smiled at her sister.

- - - - -

Piper sat on the edge of the dock at the lake where she and her sisters had vanquished the water demon that had taken the life of their mother. The camp was closed and it was quiet except for the sound of birds chirping in the distance and the water lapping at the pillars beneath her that held up the dock.

The young witch hugged her knees and rocked gently back and forth. At this point she was so confused she didn't know whether to cry or scream at the top of her lungs or both. She looked up, shielding her eyes from the bright sunlight and shouted at the heavens. "You are determined to make my life a living hell!"

"Believe it or not _they're_ just trying to help you."

Piper jumped up and turned around to face her big sister who had just orbed in behind her. "How would you know?" she countered angrily. "Go away! Leave me alone!"

"Sweetie, please calm down," Prue instructed, noticing that her sister's face had turned three shades of red.

Piper glared at her sister. "Don't you tell me to calm down! I have every right to be upset. My husband is gone, I've been attacked, Paige has been poisoned, then you show up from the dead, as an Elder no less, and Phoebe couldn't even be bothered to tell me!"

It seemed to Prue that her sister's face had turned a shade darker and she reached out to her. "Piper, please-"

"Get away from me!" Piper pushed her sister's arm away much harder than she had intended. She watched in horror as Prue lost her balance and tumbled over the dock with a loud screech, plunging into the cold water. Piper gasped and reacting instinctively, she dove in after her, forgetting Prue's lack of mortality.

While Piper searched frantically beneath the surface, blue orbs danced in the air as Prue rematerialized on the dock, soaking wet. She knew her sister had gone in after her and her eyes scanned the lake in search of her. Piper's head burst though the water, and she took in huge gulps of air. Moving with celerity, Prue orbed out and reappeared on the dock seconds later holding a wet and shaking Piper in her arms.

Coughing, Piper yanked herself out of Prue's grip and then immediately pulled her big sister into a hug. She burst into tears and her voice was muffled as she buried her face in Prue's shoulder. "Oh god, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to push you in. You hate the water, you can't swim, and I could have drowned you, I-"

"Shhh…" Prue held her sister tightly, her eyes stinging with her own tears. "You didn't hurt me. I'm already dead, which makes my fear of water redundant. It's okay." With one hand wrapped tightly around her back and the other resting against the back of Piper's head, Prue rocked her gently. "I'm the one who's sorry. I never wanted to leave you, believe me. It broke my heart to see you fall apart." She broke the hug so that she could see Piper's face and wiped her tears away. "You don't remember this," Prue continued, "but when we were exposed after we tried to vanquish Shax, some idiot in front of our house shot you. Leo couldn't hear my calls because he was in the Underworld with Phoebe and I had to take you to the hospital. If Tempus hadn't turned back time you would be dead now. I had to go, Piper, so that you could live."

"But you were the better witch. You should have let me go." Piper spoke softly, almost inaudibly, but loud enough for Prue to take in every word.

"No! That's not true and I don't EVER want to hear you say that again." She spoke sternly, shaking her head vigorously from side to side. "YOU are the most powerful witch the world has ever known just as it was meant to be. Destiny had other plans for me." Prue exhaled, took another breath and continued, her tone losing it's harshness. "You, Phoebe, Paige, _you're_ the true Power of Three."

Prue's words rendered Piper speechless. She shivered from the cold breeze that blew through her wet clothes. Her teeth chattered and she hugged herself tightly. Both sisters heard the rumble of thunder in the distance and looked up, noticing for the first time that the sun had disappeared behind a blanket of grey cloud.

"Come on, I'm orbing you home before you catch pneumonia out here. We'll come back for the jeep later." Prue wrapped her arm protectively around her younger sister and they disappeared in a swirl of blue light as the thunder rumbled in the distance once more.


	6. Chapter 6

_No, you're not seeing things, it's an update! I must apologize as I haven't updated in ages because of a recently discovered passion for golf. Rest assured that despite considerable lapses of time between posts, I would NEVER abandon a fic and leave it unfinished. Many thanks as usual to **Swedish Mystery** for her beta reading and for keeping me motivated to write. Thanks also to a certain **Welshgirl **(you know who you are) for giving me ideas and inspiration when it's needed. _

**Chapter 6**

Phoebe sat in the kitchen, bouncing Wyatt on her knee as she studied the Book of Shadows resting on the table beside her and looked up as Prue orbed in with a shivering Piper at her side. Noticing that they were both soaked to the skin and dripping water all over the floor, Phoebe's eyes widened in surprise. "What the hell happened to you two?"

"Don't ask," Prue mumbled, shaking her head. "And YOU," she added, pushing Piper toward the door, "hot shower, now. GO!"

Piper grimaced, but inwardly it pleased her to be bossed around by her big sister once more. She reserved a glare for her little sister before silently leaving the kitchen.

Glancing at Prue, Phoebe sighed. "Looks like you two have made up I see. Piper's pissed at _me_ now."

Prue furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. "Why would she be mad at you?"

"Because I didn't tell her you were here," Phoebe answered.

"Oh. She'll forgive you eventually."

"I hope so." Phoebe studied her older sister for a moment and frowned. "Hey! Those jeans and that top are new. Couldn't you have picked something else out of my wardrobe this morning? They're all soaked and muddy."

Prue narrowed her eyes. "Okay, let's talk about my leather jacket right _now_."

"Let's _not_." Phoebe jumped up, setting Wyatt on the floor. "You need to get out of those wet clothes and have a hot shower too while I mop the floor. Go!" She started to push her big sister toward the door but Prue suddenly disappeared in a swirl of blue light and the younger Halliwell found herself grasping orbs that gradually dimmed and faded away. Letting her hands drop to her sides, Phoebe looked up at the ceiling and sighed.

**- - - - - **

Deep in the depths of hell, Gorlon contemplated the demise of the Charmed Ones in the solitude of his lair and a small smile played at the corner of his lips. He sat at a table and drummed his fingers on the pages of an ancient tome he had been studying. The foolish darklighter had played right into the hands of the alchemist. He never stood a chance against the Charmed Ones and Gorlon knew this. Direct confrontation had been the undoing of every evil being that had attempted to go up against them, even the Source himself. That is why he had come up with a more insidious plan that would involve no contact with the witches. There was no need to do battle with them, or even leave the Underworld for that matter. The darklighter had done that for him.

The alchemist chuckled, enjoying the irony of the situation. He should really be thanking the witches for their contribution to their own undoing. If they had not vanquished his son Kierkan, he would never have stumbled across the tome that lay open before him now, the one that contained the very recipe for the poison that coursed through the veins of the youngest witch at this very moment. How his son had come into possession of such a priceless book, he had no idea. Kierkan was clever, but foolish. The old alchemist did not feel love for his son, but still, Kierkan was his flesh and blood and his death would soon be avenged. The old alchemist would never have admitted to his son that he admired him for the power that he had held. Kierkan had managed to create a life essence that although flawed, was something not even Gorlon had been able to accomplish and he felt a hint of jealousy. Its flaw was its femininity, its need for free will. His upper lip curled in disgust. As far as the old alchemist was concerned, women were a curse and the undoing of all men. After all, it was Eve who tempted Adam to eat the forbidden fruit. On the other hand, if it hadn't been for that little weakness in his son's creation that resulted in his death, the alchemist would not be sitting here waiting for a Charmed One to die. His expression of abhorrence turned into one of delight.

Gorlon tapped the tome lightly, which also contained an antidote to the poison, and chanted softly in an ancient dead language. He watched as the tome turned into dark orbs and vanished completely from his sight. He doubted the witches would ever find him, he was hidden so deep within the Underworld. But still, it didn't hurt to take precautions because the book also contained an antidote to the poison. Even if the witches found him, they did not know the almost extinct language required to retrieve the tome from its hiding place, and he would die before he would reveal the incantation. He laughed at the absurd simplicity of his plan. It was funny to think that he, a mere alchemist, was about to destroy the most powerful force of good the world had ever known, the Power of Three.

**- - - - - **

Paige stirred restlessly in her sleep and moaned as her foster brother tormented her in her dreams. She saw her battered sister laying at his feet. His words echoed repeatedly in her mind. _"Look at your sister. You did this to her. You let it happen…your guilt will never leave you."_

The witchlighter tossed her head from side to side, her eyes still shut tightly. A lone tear trickled down one cheek. "No, no! Leave her alone! No!"

"Paige?" A distant, but familiar voice entered her dream world and attempted to pull her out of it. "You're dreaming. Open your eyes for me. Paige, can you hear me? Open your eyes."

The witchlighter's dream world slowly evaporated as reality took over her senses. She mumbled softly as the familiar voice continued to coax her into consciousness. She sat bolt upright the moment her eyes opened and sucked in a breath.

"Easy Paige, it's okay. You were just dreaming." Ava Nicolae eased the witchlighter back down onto her pillow.

"Ava?" Paige gave the gipsy doctor a puzzled look as she took in a few deep breaths to calm her racing heart.

"That's it. Keep breathing. It was just a dream." Ava placed her hand on Paige's shoulder to soothe her.

"What brings you here?" the witchlighter asked between breaths.

"I'm taking over your care from Dr. Phillips and I have some good news for you Paige. I'd like to discharge you today." Dr. Nicolae hesitated before continuing, her knowledge of the whitelighter's true condition weighing heavy on her heart. "I think the best place for you to be right now is at home with your sisters."

As if on cue, Piper entered the room with a sneeze. "Bless you!" Both Paige and Ava called out simultaneously. Paige was relieved to see that Piper was okay. Ava was glad that Paige was going to have the support of her sister. Breaking bad news to a patient was never an easy task.

"Hi Piper! Ava just told me I can go home today, and not that I'm not happy about it because I am, but Dr. Phillips was so determined to keep me here. What brought on this change?" The witchlighter looked questioningly at both her sister and her doctor.

Piper sat down on the edge of the bed beside her sister and leaned over to kiss her on the cheek. "Yeah, I know. I made a few calls earlier and Ava pulled a few strings. Considering who you are, Phoebe and I felt that Ava was more qualified to take care of you." Piper placed a hand on her sister's forehead. She felt hot.

Paige absently placed her hand over the spot where her wound was. "It's just a scratch now, I'm fine. I just need to get out of this place."

Piper and Ava glanced at each other and the doctor began to speak. "It's not that simple I'm afraid."

The witchlighter frowned in confusion. "Wh- What do mean?"

Piper held onto Paige's hand and squeezed it a little as she took over for Ava. "Sweetie, when the darklighter…" Painful memories flooded the oldest Charmed One's mind but she forced herself to continue. "…when he took us, he poisoned you with an unknown substance-"

"-but you found an antidote right?" Paige interjected.

Piper shook her head and gave her sister's hand another gentle squeeze. "No. But we'll find something Paige, I promise you."

The witchlighter's face paled as she struggled to digest this shocking revelation. Her silence filled the room.

"Sweetie, talk to me please," Piper coaxed her younger sister, her voice laced with concern.

"How long have I got?" Paige questioned.

"Sweetie, we'll find a way to-"

"HOW LONG HAVE I GOT?" Paige demanded, cutting her sister off.

Piper hesitated, exchanging glances with Ava and responded quietly. "A week or two."

"Oh. I see." Paige gazed down at the bed sheets and swallowed hard. Piper's eyes filled with tears but she fought them back. Paige looked up at both her sister and Dr. Nicolae. "Well, if I'm going to die, I sure as hell don't want to waste any more time in here. When can I go home?"

Ava took this question as her cue to leave. "Uh, just as soon as I have the paperwork ready. I'll get started on that now."

Paige sat up and started to pull back the covers. "I should get dressed. Can you find my clothes for me Piper?"

"Whoa, slow down there, sister." Piper pushed her back down onto the pillows and put the covers back over her. "Slow down. You still have a needle in your arm from the IV you know."

Paige swatted her sister's hands away and struggled to get up once more. "No problem, I can fix that." Piper grabbed Paige's hand as she attempted to pull the needle out of her arm and held it tightly. The witchlighter glared at her sister. "Let go Piper, I said I want to get dressed!"

"No." The oldest Halliwell glared right back at her. "Not until you calm down."

Paige's eyes watered. "I don't have the time to lie around Piper. I'm dying, so forgive me if I'm a little upset!" She struggled to sit up again, fighting Piper's grip, but one sister was as stubborn as the other though, and Piper wrapped her younger sister in an embrace. "Let go!" Paige rebelled, attempting to push Piper away from her.

"Nope." The older Halliwell replied stolidly, holding Paige tightly in her arms. "No way," she added as Paige continued to resist her embrace, pummelling her fists against Piper's shoulders.

Eventually the witchlighter stopped grappling with her sister and simply went limp in her arms, realising that she needed her. Resting her chin on Piper's shoulder, Paige returned the hug.

"You're not going to die," Piper spoke softly in Paige's ear. "I won't let you."


	7. Chapter 7

_**Author's Note: **Just to let you know, I am going home to Canada and to Vermont, USA, with my family from 12 -24 October, so probably won't be posting again until I get back. Hope you can wait until then and that you won't send any demonic bounty hunters after me, hehe. Enjoy this chapter. _

**Chapter 7**

Paige lay in her bed and stared up at the ceiling. She was not feeling herself at all. She had moments of calmness and moments of total restlessness, bordering on panic. Her internal thermometer had gone berserk. She was either hot or cold and nothing in between. Right now she was sweating.

It had been a few days since she was allowed to go home and she had totally immersed herself in her painting in an attempt to escape her reality. Ironically, her work reflected what she was feeling. She wasn't deliberately avoiding her sisters but the air in the manor was so thick with tension that it was just easier to stay in her room. Paige got up and sat down in front of her easel which held a canvas she had begun working on yesterday, a soothing seaside landscape, something completely different to what she had been painting previously. She grabbed her palette and placed it on her lap, squeezing drops of different coloured acrylic paints onto its wooden surface. She took a brush, blended a few of the colours together and began to paint, shutting out the sounds of shouting emanating from somewhere in the manor.

Paige stopped suddenly, bringing her brush to rest on the cliff top she had just been touching up with the paint and studied the coastal scene that illustrated the canvas before her. She wrinkled her brows in confusion as the painting suddenly seemed to come to life. She could hear the murmur of the ocean, the cries of the seagulls and the song of the wind as if she were sitting on the beach herself instead of in her bedroom. She could hear the waves lapping against the sand and crashing into the rocks near the cliff. The solitary figure walking along the beach held onto its hat as the strong ocean breeze attempted to claim it. The clouds drifted across the blue sky. The figure, still holding onto its hat with one hand, turned and waived at Paige with the other. The witchlighter dropped her paintbrush which made a clattering sound as it hit floor and she stood up too quickly, causing her chair to tip over and land with a thud. She shut her eyes tightly and shook her head in disbelief. There was a soft knock at the door when Paige opened her eyes again and she turned her head to see Piper standing at the doorway. When she looked back at the canvas it was nothing more than an acrylic seascape.

"What's wrong?" Piper questioned with concern, sensing that something wasn't quite right with her younger sister.

"Nothing," Paige lied. "Uh, just a moment of clumsiness," she continued as she bent down to pick up her brush and set her chair upright. I don't mean to be rude, but what do you want Piper?" She questioned in return.

"To get away from the battle of the sisters out there." She replied, pointing over her shoulder with her thumb towards the hallway as she shut the door behind her with her other hand. "Huh. It's just like old times. Prue and Phoebe are arguing and I'm stuck in the middle again!" Piper rolled her eyes and sat down on the edge of the bed.

"Yeah, I could hear that." Paige mumbled as she sat down and resumed her painting, convincing herself that she had been imagining things before. "It woke me up this morning. What are they fighting about anyway?" The witchlighter asked absently, completely immersed in her work.

Piper stared at the painting. "Uh, failed mission to the Underworld to find the alchemist, which nearly got Phoebe killed when they had a run in with another thorn demon and Prue had to heal her. Again."

"Oh." Paige put her paintbrush down. "So it's my fault they're arguing."

"Oh no sweetie, it's not your fault! Phoebe was too impatient and Prue didn't think they were ready to take on the Underworld yet, that's all." Piper got up and stood behind Paige, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"Well, if it wasn't for me they wouldn't have needed to go there in the first place." She brushed Piper's hand away, feeling that she didn't deserve her sister's sympathy.

"Some things never change with you! Why didn't you listen to me?" Prue shouted angrily. "You were outnumbered by those demons Phoebe! Why did you pull away from me and try to take them out, what were you thinking? How long have you been a witch now?"

"Oh I don't believe this! You're dead and you're STILL lecturing me! You're right Prue, some things NEVER change!" Phoebe glared at her big sister.

"Don't you dare talk to me like that!" Prue snapped back. "Do you think I like to watch you get hurt? Phoebe, you're experienced enough by now to know that when you're outnumbered you need to back off. You-"

"Why did you orb us out Prue? Time is running out for Paige. Retreat is a luxury we don't have time for. We need to do something and we need to do it NOW! Maybe Elders sit around and do nothing, but witches don't."

Prue's temper flared and she shot her sister a piercing look. "Do I look like I'm sitting? I orbed you out because I didn't want you to get killed Phoebe!"

"All right you two, knock it off right now!" Piper entered the kitchen, her face as red as her big sister's. "Prue, you're an Elder! You should be beyond arguing, and YOU Phoebe," Piper exclaimed, pointing a finger at her younger sister who had been attempting to sneak out of the kitchen, but had now been stopped in her tracks, "You've been a witch long enough to know that you should NEVER go off half cocked in search of demons, not to mention you're fighting with your DEAD sister. Do you have any idea how lucky we are to have Prue with us now? And now the two of you have got Paige thinking it's her fault that you're fighting. Is that what you want?"

Prue and Phoebe looked down at their feet in shame. "No." They mumbled simultaneously, feeling like chastised children.

"Well then, you need to stop bickering and work together. Time's running out. And Phoebe, why are you avoiding Paige? You haven't said a word to her since she came home and she thinks you're not talking to her because you're mad at her."

Phoebe suddenly felt like a deer caught in the headlights of a passing car. "Uh…no, I…"

"You're afraid of how Paige is going to react when she sees you, aren't you?" Piper answered for her sister.

"Well, she did throw me against a wall," Phoebe answered hesitantly.

"Sweetie, she's fine now. I doubt she'll do that again. Besides, she's painting. Why don't you take that up to her," Piper suggested, pointing at plate of fresh baked chocolate chip cookies that was sitting on the kitchen counter.

"But-"

"Please?" Piper interjected.

"I-" Phoebe decided not to finish her sentence and sighed instead. "Fine," she agreed as she reached out for the plate of cookies which Piper handed to her. She took a cookie off the top and bit into it, crunching away as she left the kitchen.

Piper quickly grabbed a towel and ran after her little sister, snapping the towel across her backside when she had managed to catch up to her.

"Ow! What was that for?" Phoebe cried out, covering her behind with her free hand as she bolted toward the stairs.

"Those are for Paige!" Piper scolded, watching Phoebe ascend the staircase. Piper turned to find Prue standing behind her with a smile on her face.

"Nice to see you haven't lost your touch as the mediator."

"Yeah, and I better not have to mediate between the two of you again," Piper held up her index finger in warning.

"Oh no, not Mr. Pointy finger!" Prue teased her sister and made a break for it.

"This isn't funny!" Piper followed her sister back into the kitchen, swatting her sister with the towel as they ran.

"It's me. Can I come in?" Phoebe tapped reluctantly on her sister's bedroom door. There was no response. Suddenly Phoebe heard a shriek and a crashing sound coming from inside the room. Phoebe threw the door open and froze at the sight before her. "Paige!"


	8. Chapter 8

_**Author's note: **Well here it is, after all this time. Sorry to keep you hanging on for so long but so much has been going on in my life that I've been a little distracted. I must give credit to **Swedish Mystery**, normally my Beta Reader, who wrote the first segment that takes place in Stockholm (well, as her name indicates, she IS the Swedish expert, hehe). She is extremely talented and has an excellent command of the English language. Next time I visit her, she is going to get a BIG bag of Jelly Belly jellybeans (her favourite food, hehe). Many thanks to a fine writer for all her help. Thanks also to **WelshCanuck** for helping me to think of a way to end this chapter. Enjoy everyone.  
_

**Chapter 8**

Leo looked out of the window of _Blue Door Café_. A young woman was sitting with her two small children outside the restaurant across the street. Her youngest child, not more than a year old, was playing with her long brown hair and all three of them were laughing. Leo couldn't explain why but watching them made his heart ache, a feeling that filled him with pain and joy at the same time.

"Erik? Erik! I'm talking to you dude!" A voice called out in Swedish behind him, addressing Leo by the name his colleagues at the café had given him.

Leo turned around, away from the window and answered in perfect Swedish. "Sorry Amir. Were you saying something?"

The man named Amir laughed. "I've been trying to get your attention for the last five minutes. You must have been on a totally different planet or something."

"You could say that." Leo sighed.

"What were you thinking about? Did you remember something?"

Leo gave Amir a sad smile and shook his head. "No."

Amir, who had been standing behind the counter of the small café, walked up to Leo and put an arm around his shoulders. "Sorry. It wasn't my intention to stress you. You'll see. Your memory will come back sooner or later, probably sooner than you think."

"I really hope so." Leo said and gave the young mother across the street one last glance before he walked behind the counter together with Amir and started to clean the cappuccino machine. The weird feeling of heart ache had transformed into a sense of loss that made him feel all hollow inside and he was certain that it wasn't just the fact that he had lost his memory that made him feel this way. No, there was something more, something else he had lost.

Amir smiled at Leo sympathetically. Once a refugee from Iran, Amir knew how it felt to be a stranger in an all new setting. He could also understand Leo's reluctance to go to the police for help. Where he came from they were feared. He had managed to talk Leo into sharing an apartment with him as he had a spare room that was empty and he needed help paying the rent. It hadn't been hard to do. Anders, the owner of the café and the man who had taken Leo in had a small flat in town that wasn't really intended to house two people and Leo felt he had imposed on the kind hearted man long enough.

The capital of Sweden was beautiful this time of year and everyone Leo met pointed out how lucky they all were that this summer was "a good one". With his memory loss Leo could not compare any other Swedish summer to the present one and the weather really wasn't at the forefront of his mind, but the days had been mild and sunny. He hated how foreign everything felt to him in Stockholm. Everyone looked forward to this time of year but Leo felt indifferent. It wouldn't have really mattered to him if had been pouring rain all summer long.

- - - - -

Phoebe held her breath as she took in the sight before her. Paige's easel had tipped over. Her chair looked like it had been thrown right across the room. Tubes of paint and brushes lay scattered everywhere and an upturned palette stained the floor with paint. Paige cowered beside her shattered bedside lamp, hugging her knees tightly as she leaned her back on the edge of the bed. She shrieked when Phoebe tried to touch her and she slapped at her sister's hands.

"Paige, it's me, Phoebe." She grabbed her sister's arms and held onto them tightly. Paige struggled against Phoebe's firm grip. "Look at me, honey. LOOK at me." Phoebe waited patiently as her younger sister continued her struggle.

"He's here! He's not dead! He's going to hurt Piper again! Let me go!" Paige cried out, desperate to free herself from her sister's grasp.

"Sweetie, there's no one here but you and me."

"He's beside you, can't you see him? He was in the painting, he jumped out of it!" Paige's breath was ragged with panic.

Phoebe saw nothing but a painting that had been ripped through the middle. "Sweetie, a darklighter can't jump out of a-"

"Oh god! Phoebe get out of the way, he's going to kill you!" Paige was frantic now. Unable to use her hands, she kicked her sister in the stomach, releasing herself and sending Phoebe flying into the opposite wall. Lunging at the figment of her imagination, Paige tripped over the upturned easel and landed on top of it. A sharp edge dug into her right eyebrow and she yelped in pain as blood gushed from the wound. She felt the warm, sticky liquid trickling down the side of her face. She lifted herself up with her arms and cried out for Phoebe. She practically threw herself at her stunned older sister and hugged her tightly. "Phoebe, I'm so sorry, he was going to kill you, I had to protect you." Paige was babbling now and she couldn't catch her breath.

A shaken, but otherwise unharmed Phoebe returned the hug and cradled Paige in her arms. She felt her sister's panic and struggled to stifle it. "It's okay sweetie, it's okay. Please calm down. We're both safe. No one's here but us." Phoebe rocked Paige gently back and forth in an attempt to soothe her.

Having heard the commotion from downstairs, Prue and Piper burst through the door. Piper gasped. "What the-"

Phoebe quickly held a finger to her lips, cutting her sister off. Then, eyeing Prue, who was slowly advancing toward Paige, she raised the same hand, palm out and shook her head, stopping her sister in her tracks. "Don't. You'll scare her," Phoebe warned softly.

Hearing her voice, Paige turned to see who her sister was talking to. Her eyes bulged out of their sockets in terror. "Demons! Vase!" She cried out, orbing the object from a shelf. Prue and Piper ducked as it sailed over their heads and crashed into the opposite wall. Shards of glass joined the debris on the floor.

"I got her, get out of here! Someone call Ava!" Phoebe ordered, and her sisters quickly left the room without protest. "Paige." She turned her attention back to her trembling, breathless younger sister, but failed to get a response. "Sweetie, look at me." Too consumed with paranoia, the witchlighter's eyes darted frantically around the room instead. Phoebe put her hands on her sister's shoulders and gently shook her. "LOOK at me," she instructed firmly but softly. "Who am I?" Paige's gaze finally fell on her sister and she ceased her struggle to get out of Phoebe's grasp. "Who am I?" The older of the two repeated her question again.

Paige studied her older sister for a moment and seemingly coming to her senses she answered, "Ph-Phoebe, my sister."

Phoebe sighed with relief. "Yes sweetie, that's right. I love you and I would never hurt you. There's no one here but you and me. You need to calm down, okay?" She cautiously wrapped her sobbing sister in an embrace and Paige returned the hug.

"What's happening to me?" The witchligher sniffled and coughed as she struggled to catch her breath.

Phoebe broke the hug to look at her sister, checking the cut above her eyebrow and feeling her forehead. Blood had traced a path down the side of Paige's face and onto the neck of her sweat soaked t-shirt. Phoebe's own hands and blouse were stained with it as well but she didn't care. Her only concern was her sister. "You're burning up sweetie. C'mon." Phoebe guided Paige to her bed and covered her with her comforter as soon as she was lying down. "Okay, sweetie, I'm gonna call Prue in here and get her to heal your cut okay?"

Paige nodded. Phoebe sensed that her sister was beginning to calm down a little as she called out for Prue, who appeared in a swirl of scintillating blue orbs with Ava at her side. As they advanced toward her bedside, Paige gasped softly and cringed against the headboard, eyeing the gypsy doctor.

Phoebe squeezed her younger sister's hand to reassure her. "That's Ava, honey. She's here to help you. You recognise her don't you?"

Paige studied the figure in front of her and nodded slowly, her expression showing signs of recognition.

"Can Prue heal your wound now?" Phoebe asked cautiously. "Is that okay?" Paige was reluctant. "You'll feel better. That cut must hurt a lot. Prue will make your pain go away." Phoebe persuaded.

"Okay," Paige answered softly. Prue hesitated.

"Prue?" Phoebe questioned. She eyed her sister suspiciously. "Wait, I know that expression. I saw it in Leo's eyes when he told you and me that he couldn't heal Piper's Arroyo fever. Don't tell me you can't heal her Prue."

"It's just, Paige's injury isn't demonic in origin. It's against the rules. The Elders-"

Phoebe snorted. "Oh screw them! Since when have you followed the rules Prue? Paige only injured herself because of the effects of a poison given to her by a DARKLIGHTER."

The Elder sighed, giving in to her Halliwell nature. "True." She moved forward toward the bed while Ava remained stationary, not wanting to startle the young witchlighter. Prue sat down carefully beside her sister, smiling, and held her hand above the cut on Paige's brow. Her hand glowed as it healed and the whitchlighter sighed with relief as the pain in her head disappeared along with the wound. Prue stepped back to allow Ava access to her patient. Paige looked up anxiously at Prue. "It's okay sweetie. Ava just wants to make sure you're okay. Can she take a look at you?" Paige hesitated and then slowly nodded her head. Prue gave her a reassuring smile.

- - - - -

Piper paced back and forth impatiently in the living room. She had placed a tray on the table containing a pot of freshly made tea and several cups. She froze when she heard the footsteps of her sisters down the staircase and turned to face them. "How is she?" she asked anxiously.

"Ava gave her a sedative to keep her calm and help her rest. Ava sitting upstairs with her now." Phoebe sighed and sat down on the couch, helping herself to the tea. Prue flopped down beside her sister in a very 'un' Elder-like manner and frowned at the teapot."

Piper's gaze fell on her older sister. "Oh I know what you're after." She took another pot from a side table and poured the hot liquid into cup. "Coffee, leaded." She passed the cup to Prue. "You drink way too much of that stuff, you know. It's not good for you."

"Who cares, I'm DEAD already, remember?" Prue mumbled in response and eagerly sipped at her coffee, burning her tongue in the process. "OW!"

Piper snorted and Phoebe grinned in amusement, shaking her head.

Prue set her cup down, noticing the blood on Phoebe's shirt for the first time. "Oh! You're hurt." Quickly forgetting her own pain, she stood up and held her hands over what she thought were wounds on Phoebe's chest and shoulder. Her hands glowed briefly but the light died away. "What?"

The younger of the two pushed her sister's hands away. "It's okay, Prue, it's not my blood. I'm fine."

"Are you sure?" Prue asked sceptically.

"Really, I'm fine."

The smile on Piper's face faded and her expression changed into a frown, lines of worry creasing her pale features. For a moment no one spoke and the manor was deadly silent. "Paige is getting worse, isn't she?"


	9. Chapter 9

_Hey there! I know it's been a long time since I last posted and I'm so sorry for the long wait. I had sinus surgery the end of April and suffered from complications. I also had a visit from my mother, not to mention a birthday to celebrate and job hunting to do. Needless to say I'm feeling fine now and I can assure you that although there may sometimes be a long wait between posts due to that thing we call life that occasionally interrupts ones flow of writing, I will NOT stop posting until this fic is finished. So enjoy everyone! _

**Chapter 9**

The waves lapped at her feet as she walked along the shore. She could feel the grittiness of the wet sand between her toes as her bare feet left deep imprints behind her. She looked up at the screeching seagulls above her, the sea breeze caressing her hair, blowing it away from her face and cooling her sweating brow. She took a deep breath, inhaling the scent of sun, sand, and salt water. She bent down to pick up a stone and smiled. The force of the waves had flattened it into an almost perfect circle. She threw it and watched it bounce, one, two, three, four times off the calm water. She giggled, pleased with her efforts. More gentle waves washed over her feet as she continued her walk along the sandy shore.

The witchlighter slowed her pace and frowned. Was she dead? No. This was different. Although this place seemed familiar, she felt uneasy. She couldn't shake the feeling that, although she was in complete solitude here, she wasn't meant to be alone. A shiver went up her spine despite the warm air as she realised that at this moment in time, she wanted to be anywhere but here. She saw something in the distance but was too far away to make it out, and she quickened her pace, walking away from the water and toward the rocky cliffs. As she got closer she realised it was not something, but some_**one, **_someone familiar and very close to her heart.

"PIPER!" She ran now, almost stumbling over her own feet. "No!" She dropped to her knees beside her sister's battered and lifeless body. Her clothes were torn and her face was so badly beaten she was almost unrecognisable. Blood stained the witchlighter's face and clothes as she cradled Piper in her arms. "No!" She wailed again and again, tears blurring her vision and dripping into the sand. "No!"

Storm clouds blocked out the sun and thunder rumbled in the distance. The wind grew stronger, whipping Paige's hair into her face. The air became distorted as dark orbs appeared before her, materialising into the darklighter that had murdered her sister. Her sorrow turned to hate as she glared at him. She laid Piper gently on the ground and lunged at him. His laughter echoed around her as he orbed away. Gripping only thin air, she fell face - first into the sand, spitting tiny grains of it out of her mouth.

Panting, she supported herself on her elbows and turned to see the darklighter materialising behind her. She jumped to her feet and lunged at him again, not caring that this time he had a crossbow pointed directly at her. He pulled the trigger and watched as the arrow pierced the witchlighter's chest. She fell backwards into the sand, breathless and now soaked to the skin as the skies opened up the rain pounded down on her. The red stain on her dress around the wound where the arrow had pierced her chest grew larger and larger as blood gushed out. She didn't care and made no effort to pull the arrow out. It was all her fault. She deserved to die. She lifted her head weakly and saw the tidal wave coming in from the sea. Soon it would descend on her and death would take her.

Her vision blurred, and she could no longer see the darklighter clearly, but she could hear him laughing. "I told you your guilt would kill you in the end."

* * *

"You don't have to stay you know," Piper whispered to Ava.

"I know, but I want to." The gypsy doctor sat at her sleeping patient's bedside, observing her with worried eyes. Ava applied a cool wet cloth to Paige's fevered forehead and sighed. "I'm sorry I can't do more to help." The witchligher's head moved slightly back and forth on her pillow and she moaned softly in her sleep.

Piper was attempting to clean up the mess leftover from Paige's earlier outburst as quietly as possible. She paused from her task and turned to look at Ava. "How is she?"

"Her fever's up. I'll give her some more aspirin to bring it down when she wakes up." She dabbed at Paige's forehead again, a thoughtful look in her eyes. "Piper, I've got some vacation time coming up. I'd like to use it so I can devote myself to helping you take care of Paige."

Piper stopped what she was doing and looked over at the young doctor. "Oh Ava that's so kind of you but we can't possibly expect you to-"

"Piper it's the least I can do after everything you and your sisters have done for me," Ava interjected. "Besides," she hesitated briefly. "Paige is going to need more help now."

"That's very kind of you. Thank you," Piper responded. She took a deep breath as she thought about her sister's condition getting worse, knowing that Ava was right.

Ava nodded. "I can take my vacation from tomorrow."

Piper resumed her task of tiding the room and silence ensued between them for several minutes. She was so wrapped up in what she was doing that she was unaware that Ava was watching her as she gradually turned chaos into order. She saw Piper's furrowed eyebrows and the frown on her face, heard her quiet sighs of frustration as she moved around the room. Ava hadn't known Piper very long but she knew enough to know that the woman was deliberately keeping busy so that she didn't have to deal with her own emotions. Phoebe had no trouble sharing her feelings, but her older sister was different.

"Piper, I want to help you too. If there's anything I can do-"

"I'm fine, just concentrate your efforts on Paige," Piper cut the gypsy doctor off more abruptly than she had intended. "Sorry, Ava. It's just…Paige is our priority right now. What I'm going through…it doesn't matter."

"Piper, it does." Ava stated gently.

Suddenly, they both turned their attention to the witchlighter and watched as she shook her head back and forth and moaned, tears trickling through her closed eyelids and down the sides of her face. She abruptly bolted into an upright sitting position and her eyes shot open, going as wide as saucers. Paige screamed.

* * *

"Wallowing in self pity again?"

"What?" A startled Sam looked up to see an irritated looking Elder staring down at him with crossed arms. The bitter wind atop the Golden Gate Bridge whipped through her raven coloured hair and she shook her head to get it out of her face.

Sam turned away from her and scratched the stubble on his chin. "Is that what you think Prue?"

"Well, you're sitting here on your butt feeling sorry for yourself when you should be with your daughter, aren't you?"

The Elder's harsh words hit a nerve and he jumped to his feet, instantly going on the defensive. "For your information I have been through hell, LITERALLY, searching for the alchemist responsible for poisoning my daughter, that's what I've been doing! I came here to clear my head and to keep my distance from the whisky bottle. Do you really think I'm that heartless?"

Prue's expression softened. "Sam, I'm sorry, I-" The Elder let her hands fall to her sides. "Anything?" She questioned.

The whitelighter shook his head solemnly. The Elder nodded and pursed her lips. "Thanks for trying anyway."

"Oh, I haven't given up yet," Sam answered. "How is Paige?"

Prue sighed. "She's resting at home but I'm afraid she's getting worse." The wind continued to whip through her hair and she wiped a few stray hairs out of her eyes with her fingers. "You know, it's cold up here. Come back to the manor with me and see Paige. She needs you now."

Sam nodded, watching as the Elder orbed out and followed her.

* * *

"I killed her, I killed Piper!" Paige shrieked as Ava attempted to calm her.

"No, you didn't. I'm right here honey," Piper soothed, sitting down at her distraught sister's side and taking Paige's hands into her own.

"I held you in my arms. You were dead." Paige sobbed between ragged breaths.

"It was just a bad dream." Piper handed her sister some aspirin and a glass of water from her nightstand. "Here, these will help bring your fever down." After Paige had taken the pills, Piper gently guided her back into a lying position and wiped a few strands of hair from her sweaty forehead.

"You were dead, it was horrible. The darklighter shot me and I didn't care. I wanted to die too," the witchlighter continued. "I really am going to die," she added.

"That's NOT going to happen, Sweetie," Piper reassured her.

There was a light knocking sound and all three women turned their attention to the door to see Prue standing there. You have a visitor Paige.

Sam appeared at the door, hands in his pockets, and cleared his throat softly. "Hi."

"Took you long enough. What did you do? Detour to the nearest bar first?" Paige muttered, wiping away a tear from her eye, her despair turning to anger.

"Hey, go easy on your father. He's been all over hell and back for you in search of the alchemist," Prue intervened.

"Go easy on Paige, Prue. She just woke up from a bad dream," Piper spoke up in her oldest sister's defense.

"Sorry," both Prue and Paige apologised simultaneously.

"How are you feeling, Paige?" Sam continued.

"I've been better," the witchlighter replied, sitting up and leaning back on the headboard. She coughed as she completed her sentence. "I'm okay," she added, seeing the looks of concern on the faces of everyone in the room.

"I'll make you some tea with honey. That should help your cough." Piper remarked, kissing Paige on the cheek as she rose from her sitting position on the bed. Both Prue and Ava took this as their cue to leave as well and followed Piper out of the room.

Father and daughter were alone now and exchanged awkward glances. "Uh, is there anything I can do for you?" Sam spoke up.

"Can you sit with me for a while?" Paige blurted out suddenly, surprising both herself and her father.

"Of course," Sam smiled and sat down on the chair next to her bed.

She coughed again and he handed her the still half full glass of water from her nightstand.

"Thank you." She took it gratefully and drank until the glass was empty.

Sam took the glass from her and placed it back on the nightstand. "I wish there was more I could do for you."

"You went through hell and back for me. That's something," Paige responded.

The whitelighter shook his head. "It wasn't enough."

"It's okay. Really," his daughter tried to reassure him.

"I – I'm sorry we gave you up. I'm sorry I was such a coward, that I wasn't there to protect you from…" Sam trailed off, unable to finish his sentence.

"Don't be. I loved my adoptive parents, who cared for me and loved me in return. To be honest, I never really thought much about you growing up." Sam frowned and looked down at his feet. "But I'm glad we found each other." Paige reached out and placed her slender hand on top of her father's hand. "I'm sorry…about what I said before. I'm just angry. I was hoping to get married some day, maybe have kids. So much for that." The witchlighter frowned, fighting back tears.

"Hey, hey, don't talk like that. You're going to have kids one day and I'm going to be a grandfather." Sam smiled at his daughter.

Paige smiled in return. She felt quite clear headed for the moment and was grateful. However, she knew that she would lose her sanity eventually and an all too familiar sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach returned at the thought.

"I'd like that you know," Sam added.

"Like what?" Paige asked, perplexed.

"I'd like to be a grandfather," the whitelighter explained. "And I'd like to get to know my daughter better too, make up for lost time."

"I'd like that too…" The word 'dad' hung on the tip of Paige's tongue but she couldn't get it past her lips. Even now, with her life hanging by a thread she wasn't ready to call him that. She'd had a wonderful father who had raised her as one of her own. "…that would be nice," she said instead.


	10. Chapter 10

_A special thanks to **Swedish Mystery** for lending her expertise with all the Swedish bits_, _which I would not have been able to write without her. _

**Chapter 10**

_Stockholm, Sweden_

Amir led Leo through the metallic arch that read _Rinkeby Torg_ and into the town centre. It was a suburb of Stockholm that Leo was not familiar with. Now that he thought about it, there wasn't much about Stockholm that he _was _familiar with. Everywhere he went he felt like a complete stranger. He looked around him. Most of the architecture was very socialist in style, a result of the '_Million Programme_,' a housing project implemented in the 1960s to ensure affordable housing for everyone. Although the project was well intended, it had left behind an aftermath of ugly concrete buildings that spoiled the cityscape. Leo was aware that Rinkeby had a very large immigrant population from what his friend Amir had told him. He looked at the diversity of people scattered about the square and concluded that this could just as well be a suburb of any larger Swedish city. Considering where he had been staying before though, he might as well have been dropped on another planet.

"Did you know that in an area of one square kilometre more than 100 languages are spoken here?" Amir remarked, as if sensing what Leo was thinking.

Leo shook his head. Some women who were gathered in front of a textiles stand and who appeared to be in their thirties caught his attention. Two of the women were wearing dark coloured Khimars, robes that covered their head and their bodies, and one of the women also had a veil covering her face. A third woman with a slightly paler complexion than the other two wore western clothing. They spoke to each other in their native tongue as they handled the various fabrics in front of them, but the two children beside the women in western clothing spoke a form of Swedish to each other that wasn't quite Swedish and Leo couldn't make out what they were saying.

Several youths suddenly tore past Leo and Amir, one of them shouting "Yalla bre, aina kommer, çok loco!" to another boy lagging behind. Leo furrowed his brows in confusion.

Amir chuckled softly and put a hand on Leo's shoulder. "That my friend is known as Rinkeby Swedish. The wealth of cultures here in Rinkeby is reflected in the Swedish spoken by its inhabitants. There's a richness of loanwords that came from the languages of first generation immigrants here, mostly Turkish, but also Arabic, Kurdish, Greek, Persian, even Latin American Spanish, and several more. That boy was shouting 'Hurry up, the police are coming, they're completely crazy!' Even rap and hip hop has had an influence." Amir grinned.

"Oh." Leo looked around, but couldn't see any policemen and the boys had long since disappeared. He followed Amir as they continued to walk through the square and down a narrow side street. They stopped in front of a slightly run down concrete block of flats that looked exactly like all the other concrete blocks of flats on the street and Leo waited as Amir dropped the box he was carrying to unlock the main entrance door. He grabbed the box and entered the building. Leo followed. They went up what seemed like endless flights of stairs to him, the sound of their footsteps echoing through the stairwell, until they had reached the top floor. Keys jangled in Amir's hand once again as he unlocked the door to his flat and stepped aside to allow Leo to enter.

"Well, it's not much, but it's home," Amir said, juggling the cardboard box under one arm, while using the other to shut the door behind him. Amir led him down the narrow hallway and gestured towards a door on the left. "This is your room Erik. I hope it is not too small for you."

Leo walked into the room and looked around as he placed his suitcase on the floor. There was a single bed, a nightstand, a wardrobe and a small table with a chair by the window. There were even a couple of bookshelves mounted to the wall above the bed. It had everything he needed. "No, it's perfect. Thanks."

* * *

"Phoebe?" Prue stuck her head through her sister's open bedroom door, but it was empty. Prue then went up to the attic, taking the steps two at a time and opened the door, but there was no Phoebe to be found there either. Shutting the door behind her, she went back down the stairs, along the hallway and ran down the staircase leading to the ground floor. She walked through the foyer and into the living room and then the parlour. "Phoebe!"

"You're making a lot of racket for an Elder. And why are you walking all over the manor when you can orb?" Piper remarked as she came out from the kitchen. "And Phoebe is in the attic," she added.

"No she's not. I just checked." Prue countered.

"Oh? Well, that's where she said she was headed. She wanted to check something in the Book of Shadows I think."

Prue raised a cynical eyebrow. "Really?" A sudden realisation hit her and her jaw dropped. "Oh! She better not have done what I think she did or I am so going to kick her ass!"

"What?" Piper questioned. "Why would you-?"

Prue disappeared in a swirl of blue light before Piper could finish her sentence. "Oh sure, _now_ you orb." She rolled her eyes and headed for the staircase.

Having jogged up the stairs, Piper was out of breath by the time she got to the attic, but the room was empty. "Prue? Phoebe?" she questioned cautiously as she made her way to the Book of Shadows, her eyes widening when she saw the spell that the book was turned to. "Uh oh."

Just then she saw a glow in front of her. She watched as the orbs turned corporeal and took on the forms of a fuming Elder supporting an unconscious witch.

"Phoebe!" Piper hurried over to Prue's side and helped her lay her injured sister gently on the floor. Prue pulled out the athame embedded in Phoebe's chest and tossed it aside, muttering numerous expletives under her breath.

Piper was astonished by her sister's bad language. "Prue! That's not very becoming of an Elder."

"At this point I don't really care," Prue muttered, letting her glowing hands linger over the wound on Phoebe's blood - soaked chest.

"You could show a little more sensitivity. Your sister is hurt for crying out loud!" Piper shouted in disbelief.

"I'm aware of that Piper – which is why I'm healing her so I can kill her myself!" The Elder's voice rose significantly as she uttered the last word.

Piper was speechless. She hadn't seen her big sister this angry since the whole Roger fiasco. She watched anxiously as her raging sister continued to apply her healing touch to Phoebe's wound. It was taking far too long for Piper's liking.

Eventually, the wound healed, Phoebe groaned and her eyelids fluttered open. She was momentarily disorientated until her vision cleared and she saw Prue's angry face above her. She closed her eyes in an attempt to block out her sister's fiery stare.

"You idiot." Prue's words were seething with rage.

"What?" Phoebe queried incredulously.

"Hey, are you okay Phoebe?" Piper interjected quickly, helping her sister to sit up.

"I - I'm okay, I think," Phoebe answered, still uncertain as to whether or not she had heard Prue correctly.

"You heard me. You're an idiot, Phoebe. You've regressed back to that reckless girl with no sense of vision who ran off to New York years ago."

Piper spoke up for her younger sister who was still too out of it to speak for herself. "Prue, that's not true and you know it! How could you-"

"Piper, this has nothing to do with you. Stay out of it," Prue hissed.

"Don't you EVER call me an idiot again Prue!" Phoebe had finally found her voice and she was now standing in front of her big sister.

Both sisters glared at each other in silence for a moment, their anger building.

"Well that's what you are for going off half cocked on your own. How many times do I have to tell you not to do that? I'm getting so sick of it Phoebe! Do you have a death wish? Do you want Piper to lose TWO sisters? Is that it?"

"How DARE you insinuate that I'm reckless! I had a plan and I thought it would work this time." Phoebe defended herself.

Prue raised an eyebrow. "What? A plan to get yourself killed?"

"I don't need to listen to this crap." Phoebe retorted, the tone of her voice reflecting her disgust. She turned her back to Prue and headed for the attic door.

"Where the hell do you think you're going missy?" Prue let her anger control her. She flung her hand out, firing a lightning bolt in the direction of her fleeing sister.

"Prue no!" Piper screamed.

Phoebe turned slightly, but didn't react fast enough to get out of the way of the bolt and she squealed as it hit the back of her right shoulder, the force of it sending her crashing into the slightly open door, slamming it shut.

Prue blanched. "Oh my god what have I done?"

* * *

_Rinkeby, Stockholm, Sweden_

"It's not much of a view," Amir remarked, watching as Leo wandered over to the living room window.

"It's alright," he commented quietly as he looked out at the shadows of concrete blocks that outlined the twilight sky.

"Are you okay?" Amir asked with concern as he rose from his spot on the couch to pick up an empty pizza box from the floor. He wandered into the kitchen and seeing that the trash can was full and would need to be emptied, he placed the box on the counter for the moment.

"I'm fine," Leo answered. Leaning his hands on the window ledge, he continued to gaze absently at the red sky.

Amir cleared his throat softly and tidied the kitchen a little. Bringing out two glasses of Coke with ice, he offered one to Leo.

"I'm sorry, I can't offer you beer. I don't drink."

Leo turned to face Amir and took a glass from him. "That's okay, thanks."

He leaned against the window ledge as he swallowed a mouthful of the ice cold liquid as Amir flopped down on the couch.

Amir pulled a pack of cigarettes and a lighter out of his shirt pocket. "I did, however, pick up this bad habit, unfortunately." He took a cigarette and tossed the pack over to Leo, who caught it with one hand.

"No, thank you. I don't smoke. At least I don't think I smoke." Leo tossed the pack back to his friend, who put it back in his shirt pocket.

Amir placed his cigarette between his lips and lit up. He took a drag letting out a puff of smoke and a sigh of satisfaction at the same time.

Leo took a few more gulps of his Coke and decided to break the awkward silence that had ensued between the two of them. "So, how long have you lived here?"

Amir inhaled again, letting the smoke come out of his nose. "I've been living in this flat for four years now, but I originally came here with my mother when I was thirteen. See the photo on the window ledge?"

Leo turned around and picked up the picture frame he hadn't noticed before and studied it. It was a family photo taken outside a large house. Amir stood beside his parents as a young boy, and a somewhat older boy growing into manhood, stood along side him with an arm around his shoulder. The family was smiling.

"Who is that standing beside you?" Leo inquired.

Amir flicked ashes into the ashtray on the side table next to the couch and inhaled deeply from his cigarette. He didn't exhale. "That was my older brother. The photo was taken when we first moved into the house that my father built in my native Iran. Six months later my brother was killed, shot by Iranian revolutionary guards. He was only seventeen."

Leo thought he could see dampness in his friend's eyes.

"We were persecuted for our religious beliefs as Baha'is. We watched as the family next door to us was taken into custody. Then several days later they arrested my father and shot my brother dead when he tried to intervene," Amir continued.

"My father was a professor at a Baha'i open university. Baha'is were excluded from high schools and universities in Iran, so they established their own educational institutions. They falsely accused him and several of his colleagues of having established a secret organisation to teach against Islam. They sentenced him to ten years in prison. My mother decided to flee Iran to save me. She paid 1,200 dollars to Kurdish smugglers to guide us across the heavily mined frontier into Turkey after a perilous four day trek through the snow clad mountains that separate the two countries. We lived in Turkey for a while until we were resettled here in Sweden."

"What happened to your Dad? Did you ever see him again?" Leo asked.

Amir shook his head. "We found out from a friend that he died in prison, but to this day we don't know how."

"That must have been very hard for you."

"It was especially hard for my mother. She developed a heart ailment and died five years ago. I don't think she ever stopped grieving."

Amir took another drag of his cigarette and lowered his head, staring blankly at the carpet as he blew out smoke through his nose.

Leo thought he heard a soft sniffling sound. "Amir, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bring back bad memories."

"You didn't." Amir spoke quietly, shaking his head. "They never go away."

* * *

Leo tossed and turned in bed and eventually resigned himself to staring wide eyed at the ceiling, casting occasional glances out the window. Noticing that the time read 1:14am on his alarm clock, he sighed. No matter how hard he tried, he could not clear his head of all the thoughts running through it.

Although his situation paled in his eyes in comparison to what Amir had been through, he couldn't help but see similarities between them. The life that Amir had known and loved had been ripped away from him, his family torn apart. Leo's life and memories had been taken from him by way of his amnesia and condemned him to living in a world that was as strange to him as it was to Amir. They were two lost souls who had no idea where they belonged. He rolled over on his side and scrunched up the pillow. Lying in a strange bed in a new room for the first time brought him no comfort.

Leo wondered as he often did, if there were people, loved ones, out there somewhere, missing him and wondering if he was still alive. And then his thoughts wandered back to his encounter with the beautiful brown haired woman in the café who had appeared out of nowhere, and disappeared into thin air. He hoped every day that she might walk into the café again. He could not get the image of her face out of his mind and saw it as clearly as the day he had first seen her.

Just as he was finally beginning to drift off to sleep, Leo's eyes registered a flash of light through closed lids that shot open to reveal his room bathed in bright blue light. He sat bolt upright in shock. He looked on with awe as the glowing orbs danced at his bedside and gasped as they corporealised into the form of a small boy. The child reached out with his right arm towards the bed, palm up, wiggling his little fingers at Leo and spoke softly, his voice barely above a whisper.

"Daddy?"


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

"Prue! Are you out of your mind?" Piper yelled at her big sister while rushing over to an unconscious Phoebe.

"I – I…" Prue was too stunned to by her own actions to speak clearly. "I didn't mean-"

"Well, don't just stand there! MOVE your ass and heal her!" The tone in Piper's voice expressed both anger and anxiousness.

Prue knelt at her fallen sister's side and held her hand over Phoebe's wound. Her hand shook and failed to emit its healing powers. She clenched her fists and willed herself to calm down. "I'm so sorry," she whispered softly. She took a deep breath and tried again. Much to her relief, her hand began to glow and the wound slowly healed.

Before she had a chance to see Phoebe re-gain consciousness, Prue tensed suddenly, feeling an unbearable pain within herself. She groaned and her body convulsed as she began to de – corporealise involuntarily. Because it was happening more slowly than usual, it felt like her whole body was being torn apart, piece by piece. She had never experienced such pain in life or death and she could do nothing but scream in agony as she was orbed out against her will.

Piper stared in shock at what she has just seen and dropped to her knees. She could feel her panic rising, but quelled it when she heard Phoebe moan. She crawled toward her sister, who was lifting herself up with her hands. Piper threw her arms around her, clumsily bringing Phoebe into sitting position on the floor. "Oh Phoebe!"

The scene Piper had just witnessed brought old memories to the surface, triggering emotions that she had been suppressing and she cracked, breaking down on Phoebe's shoulder. "_They_ took Leo, Paige is dying, and now _they_ took Prue. I can't take anymore. I can't, I can't!"

Phoebe, although feeling like her circulation was being cut off from Piper's tight grip, and struggling to remember what had happened, remained silent, allowing Piper to cry on her shoulder.

The girls held onto each other for several minutes, Phoebe running a soothing hand up and down her sister's back to comfort her. The attic was quiet except for the sounds of Piper's anguish. Phoebe relived the argument between herself and Prue in her head and pieced together what had happened to her big sister. She should have been angry with Prue for attacking her, but she wasn't. She felt only her own sorrow and Piper's pain.

Phoebe rocked a little back and forth, gathering the strength and the words to speak. When she finally found her voice she spoke in a low gentle tone.

"We'll make things right again and Prue will be back. She has to be. The Elders sent her to us for a reason. _They_ won't keep her away from us for long. _They_ know we need her."

Phoebe was attempting to pacify herself as much as her sister with her own words. Part of her feared they might never see Prue again, and if that were indeed the case, she wondered if they would be able to save Paige on their own, but she couldn't let Piper know she was scared. Phoebe felt remorse now for her actions. She should have listened to her big sister and not gone off on her own. Maybe Prue was right, maybe she was an idiot.

"Piper, are you up here? Wyatt orbed out, is he with you?" Victor blurted out as he burst into the attic, startling both of his daughters. He stopped in his tracks when he saw his girls clinging to each other. "What –"

Phoebe cast her father a warning glance, silencing him, but it was too late.

Distracted by Victor's words, Piper released her iron grip on her sister. "What?" she questioned, wiping tears from her face as she jumped to her feet.

Phoebe channelled her sister's rising panic and feeling like she was on an emotional roller coaster, she thought she was going to be sick.

"Have you-"

"I looked all over the manor, I can't find him anywhere," Victor cut Piper off.

"No. No, this can't be happening," Piper shook her head in disbelief and then her eyes went wide with realisation. "He orbed to his father! That's where he went. All we need is for Prue to-" Piper cut herself off. "Oh, right. She's gone."

"What happened? What's going on?" Victor questioned.

"Uh, I'll explain later Dad." Phoebe put an arm around Piper to console her and guided her toward the old couch. "Honey, if Wyatt can find his father, he'll find his way home. Your son is a very clever boy."

Piper smiled weakly. "Yeah, he's a genius."

* * *

Prue slowly opened her eyes to find herself lying on her side on a cold, hard white floor. She was shaking all over and her clothes were damp with sweat. Her breathing was ragged and for a moment she focussed all her energy on it, taking in air and exhaling until she had calmed herself. At some point while she was being orbed, she had lost consciousness from the excruciating pain. She must have experienced the unspeakable wrath Leo had felt when he and Piper had defiantly attempted to marry against the will of The Powers That Be and had been discovered. She never wanted to experience it again.

"Uhhh…" she mumbled. She struggled to sit upright and orientate herself. It was then that she saw five Elders standing in front of her, glaring down at her.

A set of arms helped her to her feet and supported her. "Prue, honey, are you okay?"

Prue recognised the figure beside her. "Mom? I'm okay, I think." The truth was that she was glad for the support. She doubted she could have stood on her own. She was still trembling in her mother's arms.

Patty nodded earnestly. "The Elders summoned me here. I know what happened."

"Prudence, what you did today was irresponsible and unacceptable," one of the male Elders scolded her.

Prue hung her head in shame, feeling like a punished child. "I know. I'm so sorry. I acted out of anger. I never meant to hurt my own sister. I don't know what got into me." Tears filled her eyes.

"This is very serious Prudence." The sole female Elder continued to lecture her. "In harming your own sister, you misused your power. Your sisters are innocents you were assigned to assist and protect. Some of us are of the opinion that you should not be allowed to set foot on the mortal plain again and were reluctant to let you go in the first place, but we decided it was necessary. As it is, your status as an Elder is at risk."

Prue's eyes widened in shock at the thought of her sisters never being able to see her again, just as they were getting used to her being around. "Oh please, don't punish my sisters because of a mistake I made," she pleaded.

The Elders exchanged glances and stepped back to consult amongst themselves. Another of the male Elders spoke up. "We will allow you to return to your sisters for now due to the seriousness of the situation, but we will discuss the matter further once this is over." With that the Elders orbed out, leaving Prue alone with her mother.

"Oh Mom, you must be so disappointed in me. I didn't mean to hurt Phoebe, I was just so scared. She nearly got herself killed."

Patty shook her head. "I'm not happy that you hurt Phoebe, but I'm not disappointed in you. I could never be disappointed in you, honey. You were right to be upset with your sister. She shouldn't have gone off by herself, but don't let your anger control you, Prue. You saw what happened when it did. Your powers can be very dangerous if let your negative emotions influence them. That's why the Elders were so harsh with you."

Prue nodded in understanding.

"How are you feeling?" Patty asked, still holding on to her oldest daughter.

"I feel terrible. I deserved it though. Phoebe is never going to forgive me. Neither is Piper for that matter." Prue sighed. She let go of her mother and wobbled slightly as she tried to stand on her own. She felt a little dizzy and leaned a hand on her mother's shoulder until it subsided.

Patty put her arm around her daughter's shoulders again and brushed a stray hair behind Prue's ear. "They will honey. In fact, they're probably worried about you right now."

"I hope Phoebe's okay."

"She is. You healed her before they took you," Patty reassured her. "Do you feel strong enough to orb?"

"I think so." She took a probing step back from her mother. Her vision remained clear this time and her feet, although still somewhat shaky, were steady enough beneath her.

Patty stepped forward and hugged her daughter. "I love you, my darling."

"I love you too, Mom."

* * *

Upon hearing that her father had laid Chris in his crib before running up to the attic, Piper walked into the nursery to check on him. Watching him sleep peacefully brought her comfort. Satisfied that he was okay, she made her way through her bedroom, bumping into Paige in the hallway. "Oh!" both girls exclaimed simultaneously

Piper took her sister's hand. It felt clammy and cold. "Sweetie, what are you doing out of bed?"

"I heard the commotion in the attic," Paige answered, releasing her hand from her sister's grasp to tighten the belt on her bathrobe. "What happened?" she continued.

"Oh, nothing to be worried about, just a little sibling rivalry," Piper answered, biting her lower lip and rolling her eyes.

Paige gave her older sister a sceptical glance. "That sounded like more than a little rivalry to me. I heard ear piercing screams."

"Uh, well, Prue and Phoebe had a little fight, but they'll sort out. Don't worry about it, honey. You should get back to bed."

Paige opened her mouth to speak, but a wave of dizziness hit her, and she swayed slightly. She leaned on the wall behind her, waiting for her vision to clear, but it seemed to blur even more. Her sister swam out of focus before her. Walls and doors merged into each other and the ceiling appeared to Paige to be descending on them, alarming her. "Pip-"

"Whoa!" Piper exclaimed, grabbing Paige's arm to steady her as she began to slide down the wall.

"Maybe you're right," Paige mumbled, just as blue orbs appeared before the girls, temporarily illuminating the dimly lit hallway with scintillating blue light.

Piper's jaw dropped at the sight before her.

"Mommy, look, I found Daddy."


	12. Chapter 12

_Yes, I have resurrected this fic. I'm sorry it took sooooooo long to post an update. I still want to complete this story. _

_Special thanks again to my beta reader **Swedish Mystery** who helped with the Swedish in this chapter. **Swedish Mystery** is the best!_**  
**

**Chapter 12**

Piper stared speechlessly at Leo, who had been so far away for what seemed like a lifetime to her, and now that he was standing a mere five feet away from her, she had no idea what to say to him. She couldn't even move, her hand still supporting Paige. He stared back at her equally speechless, still trying to process how he got from his bedroom in Rinkeby, Stockholm, to here - wherever here was.

'Var i helvete är jag?' Leo questioned in Swedish. He recognised the woman from their encounter at the café. She was as beautiful as he remembered.

Piper blinked back at him in confusion, not comprehending his words. "What?"

"He just said where the hell am I?" A familiar voiced translated from behind her, making her jump. She turned around to see Prue, looking a little like death warmed over, standing beside her.

"What?" Feeling so overwhelmed by her emotions, repeating herself was all that Piper could manage.

"Va fan?!" Leo exclaimed in surprise at the woman who had just appeared out of nowhere in much the same way as he had.

"Svär inte Leo!" Prue scolded as she knelt down to help support Paige.

"You speak Swedish?" Piper questioned.

Prue shrugged. "Apparently."

Piper mentally slapped herself. "Of course you can, you're an Elder. What did you just say?"

"I told him to watch his language," Prue responded flatly.

"Vad är det här för ställe? Vad gör jag här?" Leo asked, with a sense of urgency in his voice.

Prue locked eyes with Leo momentarily, distracting him briefly from Piper's longing gaze. "Leo, you're at the manor. This is your home. You're safe here." She answered his questions in English.

Leo looked at the Elder uncomprehendingly.

"Leo, you understand me. English is your mother tongue, not Swedish. This is your home, not Stockholm. This is your wife and your son," Prue pointed towards Piper. "You know this. Just think for a minute."

Leo stared at Prue for a moment, concentrating on her words. He realised he did understand the gist of what this woman was saying. Then his gaze fell on the beautiful young woman with the pained expression on her face standing next to her.

Piper couldn't hold herself back any longer, succumbing to her emotions, and threw herself at her husband, wrapping her arms tightly around him. She let go, crying into his chest. The manor was silent except for Piper's sobs of anguished relief and longing that echoed off the walls.

Although Leo made no attempt to free himself from her embrace, his arms remained at his sides. He looked down at Piper and the numbness he had felt for so long melted away at her touch. Memories flooded back, like water through a bursting dam and he knew they were meant to be together, that she was a part of him. He wrapped his arms protectively around her and closed his eyes, his chin resting on her head, savouring her warmth and sharing the painful aftermath of their involuntary separation. He was reunited with his soul mate and he wanted to hold her forever.

Piper breathed in the smell of him, felt the rise and fall of his strong chest, and listened to the beat of his heart. Her eyes welled with tears and she sobbed into his chest when he returned her embrace. She wanted to freeze this moment in time so that Leo could never be taken from her again.

"Piper! Where are y-? Oh!" Phoebe froze at the top of the staircase when she caught sight of Piper and Leo locked in an embrace. She threw one hand over her mouth and held her stomach with the other as she intercepted their emotions.

Her father, not expecting her to stop so abruptly, ran into her from behind and grabbed the railing to steady himself. "Phoebe?" Victor questioned. His eyes widened as he registered what his youngest daughter was seeing. She motioned at him to take Wyatt into the bedroom and he complied without hesitation.

Leo and Piper continued to hold each other tightly, oblivious to what was going on around them. Both Prue and Phoebe were so taken in by the couple that they weren't watching Paige. They didn't notice the change in her expression, or pick up on the subtle movements that indicated she was seeing something that no one else could in her distorted world. She furrowed her eyebrows in confusion as the faces blurred in front of her and she blinked. Then suddenly her eyes went wide with fear as her gaze fell on Leo.

"Demon!" The distraught witch screamed as she lunged at a startled Leo, tearing him out of Piper's arms and tackling him to the floor. She punched him and wrapped her hands around his neck and squeezed down on his throat. Leo gasped for air, his face turning beat red and he wrapped his hands around her wrists in an attempt to loosen her grip.

"Paige, no!" Prue and Phoebe cried out in unison.

Piper was momentarily stunned, watching as both of her sisters jumped on Paige and struggled to pull her off of Leo.

"Paige, it's okay, that's not a demon, that's Leo." Piper spoke softly, once she had found her voice, despite the panic she felt inside. She joined her sisters, and together they managed to pull Paige away from Leo and she fell backward into Piper's arms. Piper could feel Paige's entire body shaking. Her forehead was soaked with sweat and Piper brushed a few damp strands of hair away from her face. "It's okay sweetie, there's no demon in the house right now."

"I'm sorry," Paige mumbled between shallow breaths, "I'm sorry."

Piper looked over at Phoebe, who was helping a coughing Leo to his feet and then turned her attention back to Paige. "You don't have to apologise. Let's get you back to bed now."

Prue rushed to help Piper, wrapping an arm around her shoulders, lifting Paige to a standing position. Piper grabbed Paige's other arm and they began to walk toward the witchlighter's room. Piper turned to glance at Phoebe and mouth the words "Call Ava."

Phoebe nodded and motioned to Leo to come with her.

"She's getting worse," Prue commented as she and Piper helped their sickly sister back into bed.

"I know." Piper covered her younger sister with the duvet and placed her hand on Paige's forehead. It was hot and damp to the touch, alarming Piper. "Prue, could you bring Ava over here? I don't think we have much time left."

Prue nodded and orbed out.

"I'm really screwed now," Paige mumbled weakly. She had become somewhat coherent again and had heard her sister's words.

"No, honey, you're not. We're going to fix this and you're going to be okay, you hear me?"

Paige nodded weekly even though she was not convinced, and closed her eyes again in an attempt to shut out the nausea. She was so tired she felt like she had just run a marathon. "I don't…uh…I…,"

"Shhhh, don't talk sweetie, just relax." Piper cooed, rubbing her hand soothingly over her sister's forehead.

Paige found comfort in her sister's touch and closed her eyes.

Leo fidgeted awkwardly as he sat at the kitchen table while he waited for his sister in law to complete her call, conscious of the fact that he was wearing nothing but his pyjama bottoms.

As Phoebe hung up the phone she could sense Leo's discomfort at being shirtless and went to the laundry room in search of something for him to wear. "Here," she handed him a t-shirt. "I think this is one of yours."

Leo hesitated, as if struggling to find his voice, but took the shirt from his sister in law. "Thanks," he answered, as he put it on.

Phoebe went to the fridge and retrieved two bottles of water. She put one in front of Leo. "Thirsty?"

"Not really."

"Leo, are you okay?"

"I'm not sure."

Phoebe opened her water bottle and took a sip, eyeing her brother in law as she did so. She could sense a mix of emotions from him: confusion, hurt, frustration, relief. She scratched her head thoughtfully. "So, it must feel weird speaking English," she commented in an attempt to keep up the dialogue between the two of them.

"Not really. Swedish just didn't feel right."

An awkward silence fell over both of them then. Phoebe waited for her brother in law to volunteer more information, but he remained quiet. She could feel his tension and in addition to that, a hint of anger. Despite all her knowledge of psychology, Phoebe didn't know what to say to him.

A sudden shriek and a thumping sound coming from upstairs set them both into motion. Leo instinctively grabbed Phoebe's arm and orbed them both to the source of the sound. When they re-materialised in Paige's room they found Piper dazed and slumped against the wall. Blood dripped from her split lower lip and she hissed in pain as she touched it gingerly with her fingers. Paige lay motionless on the floor a few feet away from her.

"Oh my god, what happened?" Phoebe questioned in alarm.

Leo knelt down beside the witchlighter and checked for a pulse. "She's alive." He gathered her in his arms and laid her gently on the bed. Then he turned his attention to his wife.

"One minute Paige looked like she was asleep and the next her eyes shot open. She shouted at me to get away from her and punched me before I had a chance to react. Then she tried to get out of bed and just collapsed," Piper explained, allowing her husband to examine the cut on her lip. Out of habit, she closed her eyes and waited in anticipation of his healing touch, but flinched instead when he dabbed lightly at the cut with a tissue that Phoebe had handed to him.

Prue orbed in with Ava in time to hear Piper's account and the gypsy doctor rushed to Paige's side to examine her. When she was finished, Ava turned to face the sisters. She wore a grim yet determined expression on her face and her eyes were filled with despair. This was the part of her job she hated most; having to deliver bad news to the loved ones of a patient and it never got any easier.

The room was deadly quiet as the sisters took in the gypsy doctor's demeanour, and it left all three of them speechless with dread.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

Sam looked around when he rematerialized. The atmosphere around him was tranquil and quiet, except for the occasional chatter of Elders and Whitelighters as they communicated with each other in their divine tongue. Sam seemed to attract little attention, despite the fact that he was the only person not wearing robes, until three Elders recognised him and stopped in their tracks. They were surprised to see him. He was rarely seen up here and any attempts to summon him were usually in vain. One of the Elders spoke up. "Samuel, what brings you here? You don't normally…"

"There's no time for small talk," the whitelighter interjected. "Is there anything you can do to save my daughter? You must know something about the poison she was given, or the alchemist who gave it to her."

"Samuel, we have become far more involved in this situation with the Charmed Ones than we should be. We know what is at stake and what the consequences will be if Paige dies. That is why we sent Prudence back to her sisters, against our better judgement I might add. There isn't anything more we can do."

The frustrated whitelighter stood before three Elders. Despite having spent most of his time running away from them, he decided to confront them in an effort to save his daughter. He didn't know what else to do. "So all I can do is stand here and watch my daughter die? Some father I am, I can't even save my own child's life."

The Elder named Daniel frowned at the whitelighter. "Wallowing in self pity is certainly not going to help your daughter. But there is something you can do."

Sam gave the Elder a questioning look.

"You can have faith that her sisters will find a way to save her."

"So, that's it? I'm supposed to just wait around and hope for the best?" There was irritation in Sam's voice and he shook his head in disbelief.

An awkward silence ensued between the Elders and the whitelighter. Sam studied them as they exchanged looks with each other. "You're holding something back. What is it you're not telling me?"

The Elders looked at each other once more and Daniel spoke up. "Actually, we were made aware of some new developments just before your arrival. There is someone who can help."

"I'm sorry." Ava shook her head and blinked as she looked at the girls. "Paige is showing signs of coma. She's not responding to any external stimuli. I will keep a close eye on her breathing because it can become irregular. I'm afraid she doesn't have a lot of time left and there isn't much more I can do for her except keep her as comfortable as possible."

Phoebe stood in silence. Her eyes watered, but she refused to cry. Her own emotions were so intense that she was unknowingly blocking out everyone else's. She had paled so much that she looked like she might pass out.

Prue took notice and stepped forward to put an arm around Phoebe, not only to support her, but comfort her as well. "I'm sorry I got so mad and that I hurt you."

"It doesn't matter," Phoebe replied quietly and placed her own hand on top of Prue's. She gave it a squeeze, indicating that she had forgiven her big sister. "It's not important now."

Piper sat down beside her comatose sister and ran her fingers soothingly through the witchlighter's hair. "Paige, you're going to be okay. We're not going to let you die. So don't worry. Just rest."

Leo stood a few feet from his wife and looked on with grave concern. He felt strange, yet at the same time he was finally home. Just minutes ago he was in Stockholm, Sweden, and now he was here facing this grave situation. It was overwhelming, but he knew it was meant to be and it was his destiny to be reunited with his soul mate.

Prue approached Piper and sat next to her. She brushed a stray hair from her sister's face with her fingers so that she had a clear view of the cut on Piper's lip and held her hand over it to heal it. When she was done, she put an arm around her sister and gave her a reassuring squeeze. After a few seconds, Prue stood up and spoke. "Okay. We're not helping Paige by standing around here. Let's come up with a plan."

The sound of the doorbell echoed through the manor and Victor sighed. "What now," he mumbled to himself and dropped the mug he was holding into the kitchen sink. It plunged into the warm, soapy water with a plop and landed at the bottom with a thud and a slight clatter as it came into contact with some plates. He grabbed the towel from the counter and dried his hands with it as he walked toward the foyer. The bell rang a second time. "I'm coming!" Victor shouted. "I got it!" he added, looking upward as he passed the staircase.

Victor used one hand to toss the towel over his shoulder, and the other to open the front door. Although he had not yet been properly introduced to him, he thought he recognised the figure standing at the front door. "Hello. You must be Inspector Harris. What can I do for you?"

"Please, call me Aidan. Can I come in?"

"Of course." Victor stepped aside to allow Aidan to enter.

"Sorry to intrude, Mr…"

"Oh, Victor is fine, no need for formalities. And you're not intruding," Victor reassured him.

"Ah. You' must be Piper and Phoebe's father, right?"

"Yes, I am," Victor confirmed.

Just as the inspector was about to ask after Paige, both of them heard the sound of footsteps and turned their attention toward the staircase to see Phoebe coming down the stairs wearing a sombre expression on her face. "Hello Aidan."

"Hi, Phoebe," He answered back, taking note of the look on her face.

Her expression had not gone unnoticed by her father either, but he remained quiet.

"Uh, I'll take over from here, Dad, thanks."

Victor nodded. "Sure. Nice seeing you Aidan, although I wish it was under better circumstances."

"You too," Aidan answered. Both he and Phoebe watched as Victor turned around and headed back to the kitchen to finish washing the dishes.

Aidan gave Phoebe a questioning look. "What happened?" He had the feeling he was not going to like her answer.

Piper thumbed her way through the Book of Shadows. Leo stood beside his wife and tried to concentrate on the pages of the thick tome, but was distracted by Prue's pacing back and forth across the attic floor.

The Elder stopped her pacing and looked at her sister. "It's a pointless waste of time looking through that book. You know there's nothing in there about Gorlon."

"I know that, Prue, but there might be other stuff in here that we can use, maybe a couple of potions."

"I don't think we'll need potions, not for Gorlon, anyway."

"No, maybe not, but we don't know what other demons we might come across."

"Ah, but you have the power of an Elder to back you up…"

"…and a shape shifter," Phoebe added as she entered the attic with Aidan.

"I'm not an Elder or a whitelighter and I don't have the power of the Charmed Ones, but I care about Paige. I haven't known her for that long, but I want to do whatever I can to help." Aidan offered. Actually, the truth was that he was falling in love with her. She made him feel like a giddy teenager again and it had been a long time since he had felt that way about a woman. He wanted to experience that feeling again, with her.

"Well, it would definitely be a tactical advantage having someone with us who can change into pretty much anything and become virtually invisible." Prue commented.

"So, do we have a plan yet?" Phoebe asked.

"Well, the problem we're having is that we don't seem to know where to find Gorlon and we don't really know anything about him, so no, Phoebe, we don't have a plan yet." Piper slammed the Book of Shadows shut in frustration.

Leo studied his wife and deciding that she needed a little comfort, he stepped forward and put an arm around her shoulder. She accepted his embrace. He opened up the tome again with his free hand and thumbed through its pages until he came to the passage he was looking for. There was something about it that seemed familiar and he hoped that if he studied it a bit longer, it might jog his memory. And it did.

"Not to mention Sam looked all over the Underworld and couldn't find him, so what chance do we have of finding him? We don't exactly have a map of the Underworld, so scrying is out. I would say we're pretty screwed," Piper added.

Phoebe shook her head "No, we're not. Sweetie, remember what you said to Paige? You said that we were going to fix this and that is exactly what we're going to do. She's depending on us." Then she turned her attention to her oldest sister, who had once again resumed her pacing. "Prue, keep that up and you're going to wear out the floor."

"Phoebe is right." Leo spoke up. "I just remembered something and I think I know how we can save Paige."


End file.
